Fans react to Boothroyd decision on Arsenal star Emile Smith Rowe in U21 loss

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A number of fans took to Twitter to comment on the decision to replace Arsenal star Emile Smith Rowe at half-time as England’s under-21s went on to lose their second group game on Sunday.

Aidy Boothroyd’s side are on the brink of being knocked out at the group-stages. They now require a win in their final game and then must hope that Portugal beat Switzerland to stand a chance of progressing.

That situation comes as they were beaten 2-0 by Portugal at the weekend. The Three Lions struggled to lay a glove on their opponents, failing to register a shot on target throughout the entire contest.

At the break, Boothroyd decided to make his first change. And while many were clearly pleased to see Ebere Eze brought on, several were left scratching their heads by the call to take Smith Rowe off.

Plenty took to social media to slam the decision to replace the Arsenal youngster. Several insisted that he was England’s best player in the first-half.

Ultimately, the decision did not pay off. England conceded twice after the break and now have a mountain to climb.

Boothroyd is coming in for a lot of criticism with a group-stage exit on the cards. And one of the decision the supporters simply cannot get their heads around is the call to take Smith Rowe off – unless it transpires that he had suffered an injury.

Here is how some of the fans reacted when it was announced that Eze was being brought on…