Defender Ben Gibson is hoping England Under 21s ' 3-2 friendly victory over Germany was a dress rehearsal for a European Championship finals showdown . Both sides will head for the Czech Republic during the summer as manager Gareth Southgate attempts to guide the Young Lions to glory , and England will do so having got the better of their German counterparts with a 3-2 win at the Riverside Stadium on Monday evening . Southgate 's men had to come from behind twice to set the stage for a late decisive push , and Middlesbrough 's Gibson is hoping that will stand them in good stead for the finals tournament . Ben Gibson ( right ) is hoping England 21s ' 3-2 victory against Germany will boost the team 's confidence . James Ward-Prowse wheels away in celebration after scoring the winner in England ' 3-2 victory . He said : 'Germany were always going to be a good side . You know they are going to be technical and strong , and that 's what they were . But we thought we could match them - we did that and ended up getting the result . 'We are hoping we will play against them at some point either in the semi-final or final in the Euros - that would be nice . It would be another tough game . 'They are a good side , so for us to get the win , that was the important thing . ' The win against Germany was England 's third against fellow finalists with Portugal and the hosts having already succumbed at their hands , and while Southgate is confident progress is being made , he is taking nothing for granted . England were heading towards defeat before Nathan Redmond 's strike on 79 minutes . He said : 'We have got depth , which really excites me because I do n't think you can go to a tournament relying on a couple of players . 'We have shown across the campaign - we started with the likes of Raheem [ Sterling ] in , we have had Luke Shaw in , we have had to win matches without all of these players at different times , without Harry [ Kane ] , without Saido [ Berahino ] , and they have kept doing it . 'And then new players have emerged , people like Jesse [ Lingard ] , who has come back from injury and who has got great potential ; Alex Pritchard has just come into the squad . 'The 23 , I am probably reasonably clear on 21 . There are a couple of places that still , in my mind , people are playing for , but I know whoever goes is totally committed . There wo n't be any loafing around , there wo n't be any lads who feel it 's a chore to go . England boss Gareth Soutgate looks on during the friendly clash at the Riverside Stadium . 'They 'll be in there backing their team-mates , and again , that 's important going into a tournament . ' England 's players had to back each other throughout a testing 90 minutes on Teesside during which impressive Kaiserslautern striker Philipp Hofmann fired the visitors into a 15th-minute lead and after Manchester United winger Lingard , currently on loan at Derby , had levelled , restored their lead five minutes after the restart . But there was to be a twist and after Norwich 's Nathan Redmond had made it 2-2 10 minutes from time , skipper James Ward-Prowse capped a fine individual display with an 82nd-minute winner , to the delight of a crowd of 30,178 . Jess Lingard ( centre ) races off to celebrate his first goal for England 's Under 21s . The England youngsters celebrate Ward-Prowse 's later winner in front of the Riverside crowd . It proved the perfect conclusion to the perfect evening for Gibson , representing his country on his own home ground . He said : 'It was a fantastic occasion . Not just to represent your country , but to do it on your home ground is a bit of a dream come true . 'It was a fantastic moment and the fans were brilliant . I got a great reception and I ca n't thank them enough for that . '
England Under 21s defeated Germany Under 21s 3-2 on Monday night . Manchester United 's James Ward-Prowse scored an 82nd-minute winner . Defender Ben Gibson hopes the win will boss England 's confidence .