Ben Wilmot went close to celebrating his England Under-21 debut with a goal as the Watford youngster’s rise up the international ladder continued in Maribor.

The on-loan Swansea City defender made his Under-21 debut after being introduced by former Hornets boss Aidy Boothroyd for the second half of yesterday's friendly in Slovenia.

And the 19-year-old went close to marking his first appearance in style just past the 70-minute mark when he headed against the post.

England kept the ball alive though, and Jon Panzo crossed for Wilmot’s Swansea teammate Sam Surridge to net on his debut and put England 2-0 up after Leeds United loanee Eddie Nketiah had converted a first-half penalty after being fouled in the box.

Boothroyd’s side were unable to hold on for the win though, as Dejan Petrovic gave the hosts hosts with less than 10 minutes to go and they snatched a draw when Janez Pisak equalised with a deflected free-kick.

Wimot, who has previously played for England Under-19s and Under-20s and was a late call-up to the squad due to injuries, will be hoping to make his competitive debut for the older age group at Stadium MK on Tuesday in a Euro Under-21 Championship qualifier against Austria.

Elsewhere, there was disappointment for Domingos Quina as Portugal Under-21s were beaten 4-2 in the Netherlands in their Group 7 qualifier.

The Watford midfielder supplied the cross for Diogo Queiros to equalise three minutes before the break as the teams went in level at half-time.

Quina was replaced at the start of the second half though, and two late goals secured the win for the Dutch after both sides had converted second-half penalties.

Hornets Academy striker Ryan Cassidy played the first 65 minutes as Republic of Ireland Under-19s were edged out 1-0 in the first of two friendlies against Denmark.

The two sides are due to meet again on Monday.