The Leeds United starlet had to wait until the last 10 minutes for his bow from the substitutes' bench in the U-21s' 2-0 friendly victory over the Czech Republic at Bramall Lane. But Delph wasted no time in catching the eye of boss Pearce.

The midfielder – the youngest player in the England squad – showed some customary flashes of impudence and quality in a confident brief appearance, including a couple of nifty flicks and a trademark raking crossfield pass.

And Pearce, left, felt that Delph and the likes of fellow debutants Ryan Bertrand, Jack Cork and Kyle Naughton laid down a marker in their bid to gatecrash their way into his European U-21 Championship party for next summer's finals in Sweden.

Pearce said: "Delphy didn't meet up with us until late on Monday night because of club commitments, which were pressing.

"But sometimes when players come onto the pitch, you can tell whether they are nervous or not at this level. And I think the likes of Bertrand, Cork, Delph and Naughton came on and showed no nerves and gave us a lift, if anything – and that's pleasing as a manager.

"If they keep listening to their manager and coaches, I'm sure they'll have a bright future.

"One or two of the youngsters who came on late on told me 'hey, you can shove us on at half-time now or even start us'. Because they weren't fazed about stepping up, which is pleasing.

"I've watched the (England) under-19s this year and the likes of Delph, Cork and Bertrand have all seen me in training camps and on match-days.
"That will help their progression, in that they won't bump into Stuart Pearce and think 'who's that fellow?' and 'I don't know him'.

"They have met me before in the times I've taken training sessions with them when I have been on the road.

"Rewind the clock two years and no-one had heard of Ashley Young or Leroy Lita and I'm hoping we might get one or two players of that ilk to push their way into the (Championship) squad this summer. The more players and competition for places, the better it is for me."

In being handed his debut, Bradford-born Delph became the first United player to be capped at under-21 level since centre-half Matt Kilgallon was selected for the friendly against Holland in November 2006.

Huddersfield-born striker Fraizer Campbell fired England ahead on 11 minutes last night, latching onto a woefully short back header from Jan Halama before coolly lobbing the stranded Jakub Divis.

Aston Villa's Craig Gardner struck a rasping 55th-minute free-kick to wrap up the win, while less than a minute later, Spurs' Jamie O'Hara saw a penalty saved after Campbell was unceremoniously barged over in the box by Ondrej Kudela.

Northampton loan keeper Frank Fielding – who shipped five goals in the Cobblers' FA Cup exit to Leeds on Monday night – was handed his under-21 bow after coming on for injured Peterborough custodian Joe Lewis in the 31st minute.