England boss Gareth Southgate has revealed that he is excited about watching his side 'test themselves' in the UEFA Nations League.
The Three Lions have been given fixtures against Croatia and Spain in the opening stages of the newly-formed tournament, which has been designed to minimise the number of friendly internationals.
Southgate has acknowledged that England have received a tough draw, but has admitted that he is fan of the structure of the competition.
The 47-year-old told Sky Sports News: "The whole concept of this tournament is that you play high-quality matches and competitive matches, so that criteria is fulfilled with the group that we're in.
"In particular Croatia we haven't played for a little while so we're looking forward to that and of course Spain, one of the best teams in the world. It's good to test ourselves in these games.
"We like the concept of fewer friendlies and the concept of games against high-level teams I think that's really important."
The first fixtures will take place in September 2018.
Darren Plant
