Dominic Solanke was on target as England Under-19s began their quest to become European champions for their age group with a win.
The Chelsea striker, who spent last season on loan at Vitesse, netted with a good finish against France following an own-goal as England went into an early two-goal lead. They conceded before half-time but held out for a 2-1 victory over strong opposition.
Solanke was one of four Chelsea players involved on the second day of the European Under-19 Championships which are being staged in Germany. He and Izzy Brown were in attack, as they had been when England won the Under-17 Euros two summers ago, and Fikayo Tomori began in defence. Tammy Abraham came on 20 minutes into the second half.
Next up for England Under-19s is a game on Friday against the Netherlands who won their first group game against Croatia. The top two from each group go into the semi-final stage.