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 Remi Allen has admitted that she has still not come to terms yet with England's superb achievement of winning the UEFA Under-19 Championships last month.The Leicester City midfielder played a vital role in the side's engine room and she told Women's Soccer Scene that the enormity of the success - England's first European Championship title of any kind since 1993 - is yet to strike home. "It still hasn't sunk in, it was an amazing achievement," said Remi. "I'm loving it at the minute and not come back down to earth yet. "It was brilliant throughout the tournament and we enjoyed every minute of it. We actually didn't want to come home - it was that good - and to win it just topped it off." England also managed the feat of going the whole tournament without conceding a goal. "Credit to the keeper and the defenders," said Remi. "We defended as a team and it showed as we were really hard to break down. It was a good achievement, especially for Becks (Rebecca Spencer) - she deserved it." Right from the first match, England set the tone for their performances with a 3-0 victory over Sweden which sent them on the way towards winning their group. "I think winning the first game is really important but we played well and it gave the team a lot of confidence for the games to come," she added. In the semi finals, England found themselves up against Switzerland and produced a great display in running out 3-0 winners. "We were aware of Switzerland, they have great talent in their side, but we were ready and focused on what we had to do," said Remi. "It was a real team performance. "I think our first game and our quality of football was probably our best but for grinding out a result, I think Switzerland was a great game for that." Now attention was focused on the Final and England were ready, seizing the initiative from the very start of the game. "We couldn't wait," admitted Remi. "The two days inbetween were a nightmare as we just wanted to play. "We weren't thinking about being tired, we just wanted to get out there so when we finally did, we started really well and it set us up for the rest of the game." The decisive moments came just after the half hour, England taking the lead when Toni Duggan finished off a fine move. "It was brilliant, nearly the whole team played a part in the goal. It settled our nerves a lot and then Jordan (Nobbs) hit the second. It wasn't comfortable but we had the 2-0 advantage and just needed to defend well from then on. "It was an amazing goal (from Jordan), she was quality all tournament and she deserved it. She was a bit shaky at the start but as soon as she hit that goal, she was fantastic for the rest of the game. "We didn't want to sit back and defend and wanted to score more goals but the main priority was not to concede and we did that." Remi had the honour of finishing the match by wearing the captain's armband but for her, and Chelsea Weston, the result was particularly sweet as they were members of the England side beaten in the Final by Germany two years ago. "It was a lot of heartache at that moment but I think Germany were deserved winners," she recalled, "but this time we deserved to win the tournament overall. It was a long time coming but it was worth it." During the course of the tournament, England sealed their place in the FIFA Under-20 World Cup Finals in Germany next year. With a number of the side growing older, it gives a chance for the victorious team to reunite once again. "I'd love to play again with that side," said Remi, "but we have to move up an age group now. Hopefully we can play together in the World Cup and there'll be bigger things to come from us." On returning to her home city of Leicester, Remi has found herself to be something of a local celebrity. Last Saturday, she was presented to the crowd during Leicester City's match against Swansea City at the Walkers Stadium and received a fantastic reception. "It's been brilliant, I've had so much support," she smiled. "With everyone ringing me and texting me, I couldn't have asked much more of everyone."
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