England should seriously consider using the likes of John Stones, Phil Jones, Jack Wilshere and Raheem Sterling at U21 level, writes Adam Bate.
As England's Under-21 team prepare for their two-legged play-off with Croatia for a place at the 2015 European Championships, coach Gareth Southgate will understandably put his trust in the players who topped their qualifying group with nine wins from 10 matches.
Several high-profile youngsters are busy with a double header of their own, of course, as England's senior team look to secure their own spot at Euro 2016. But it's what should happen next summer if the Under-21 side qualify for the finals in the Czech Republic that is really interesting.
Southgate's predecessor Stuart Pearce became an increasingly outspoken figure as his frustrations in the role grew towards the latter stages of his six-year spell in charge.
Whether it was players being denied him by call-ups to the senior side, club managers refusing to release them or even the young men themselves showing little interest in Under-21 football, Pearce clearly felt the support was not always there.
Having reached the semi-finals in 2007 and then the final in 2009, the experiences of 2011 and 2013 left a sour taste - two group stage eliminations with England losing three out of three in Israel last year.
Pearce was, of course, obliged to defend his tenure but his words were typically impassioned. Speaking to Sky Sports last September, he sounded like a man being asked to play poker without the picture cards.
"In our wildest dreams do you honestly think that England or any nation in the world can turn up at a major tournament without six or seven - I think there were eight players with senior international caps - who could have played for the England Under-21s this summer?
"Once they go through the golden ivory towers of the seniors they don't want to come and play with the Under-21s any more. There is no nation in the world that could suffer that."
Logic
It's worth noting that in the summer of last year England were preparing for a World Cup in Brazil.
A showpiece friendly with the hosts at the Maracana was ostensibly a celebration of 150 years of the Football Association but it also seemed to serve a practical purpose for England's players so there was a certain logic behind including those expected to be in Roy Hodgson's World Cup squad. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain even had the experience of scoring a fine goal that surely justified his trip.
But the summer of 2015 is a different situation entirely, and there are signs of flexibility in the thinking. Luke Shaw has been included in Southgate's squad for the Croatia games in the knowledge that it best serves England for him to be there rather than sat on a bench watching Leighton Baines deal with San Marino.
But there is an opportunity to go further should England reach the tournament itself.
It's not only Shaw who is eligible for the tournament. Indeed, Southgate could field a back-four consisting of full internationals without even calling on the Manchester United left-back. Calum Chambers, John Stones, Phil Jones and Jon Flanagan would make for a strong defence.
In midfield, there is the enticing prospect of unleashing Raheem Sterling, Ross Barkley and Oxlade-Chamberlain. Even Jack Wilshere is theoretically available for selection despite being a little over six months shy of his 24th birthday when the tournament takes place. Born on New Year's Day 1992, he is - to the day - the oldest a player can possibly be while still eligible to compete.
There is an argument that this would be a backward step for these players. Wilshere made his senior England debut as long ago as August 2010, while his Arsenal team-mate Oxlade-Chamberlain featured at Euro 2012. But others will point to the involvement of Juan Mata and Javi Martinez in Spain's successful 2011 team despite having been World Cup winners the previous year.
Southgate, however, is prepared to ignore any calls to draft in the star names.
"I can tell you now that isn't even in my thinking. Alex, for example, has been to two major championships. Those guys are seniors.
"I know people cite Spain, with Mata and a couple of others. But this is fairly typical of most Under-21 coaches around Europe. Christian Eriksen still qualifies to play for Denmark but I don't see the Danes clamouring for him.
"It is that balance. You need to see what can be gained by bringing them back into this environment."
The question of what can be gained is a tricky one to assess. For instance, there is the question of fairness and loyalty to players who've gone through a qualifying process that encompassed trips to Lithuania and Moldova. But if the end goal is a successful senior team, perhaps that ought to be a secondary concern.
More worryingly, there is the danger that the exercise could prove counter-productive. Motivation is key and for players with Champions League experience, a game in front of a few thousand in the Czech town of Uherske Hradiste might not spark the necessary high levels of enthusiasm.
Hope
However, there must be hope that the prospect of tournament success can inspire England's best.
While England's young talent did get a flavour of Brazil, for Jones, Shaw, Wilshere and Barkley their only start came in a goalless dead rubber against Costa Rica. Oxlade-Chamberlain, despite Southgate's talk of him going to tournaments, played a total of 80 minutes of football in them. These are hardly seasoned veterans just yet.
The 2015 tournament offers something else. There is the chance to actually lift a trophy - surely a possibility for a full-strength England in an eight-team tournament - and be part of what could be a transformative fortnight for all the players involved.
That's certainly how Ander Herrera remembers that 2011 victory for Spain alongside Mata and the rest.
"To play with the best Under-21 players in the country, share so many experiences and then actually win it creates a special bond between us," said the now Manchester United midfielder.
The prospect of Barkley, Sterling and Wilshere sharing an experience like that in France in 2016 is what all England fans will be hoping for.
What the FA and the players themselves need to consider if the Under-21 team overcome Croatia, is whether or not tasting that glory a year earlier in the Czech Republic might just make the ultimate dream that little bit more achievable.
Potential England U21 team: Butland, Flanagan, Chambers, Stones, Shaw; Jones, Wilshere; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Barkley, Sterling; Berahino.
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