CURTIS Anderson knows England have it in them to go all the way and win the Under-17s World Cup final tomorrow.

The Young Lions keeper has not been shy about talking up the team's chances since before the tournament began.

He spoke of them as potential champions from the outset – and he is confident they can match that expectation by beating Spain in the final in Kolkata (3.30pm kick-off, live on BBC Two ).

“It will be the biggest game I've ever played in,” said the 17-year-old South Cumbrian, who has kept two clean sheet from four games, and who was the penalty shootout hero in the last-16 win over Japan – saving one and scoring one.

“It's been my dream to play in a World Cup since I started football, just like every young lad, so to have the opportunity to do it, I'm just going to give it everything and embrace it.

“I've always had no doubts about this team, and all the lads are full of confidence. We know what we are capable of, so on Saturday we will just show everyone what we can do and we know that'll be enough.”

England have reached the final in the back of an unbeaten record through the whole tournament, beating Chile, Mexico and Iraq in the group stages, before disposing of Japan and the USA.

That set up their victory over Brazil in the semi-finals in Kolkata on Wednesday, beating the only side to have inflicted defeat on the Spaniards in the tournament.

The Young Lions will look to do the same in a repeat of the European Championships final earlier in the summer, when Spain won on penalties, and Anderson is hopeful there will be a different result this time around.

He added: “We have played Spain before, obviously, so we know what to do. We are unbeaten in the tournament, unlike them, so we head into the game full of confidence. We know what we need to do.”

Ulverston's Anderson started his footballing days as a junior at Crooklands Casuals – where dad Terry still turns out for the reserves – before being signed up by Blackpool, then moving to Premier League giants Manchester City in a £15,000 transfer.

While based in Manchester, he is often back home in South Cumbria, where he attended Yarlside Academy, and where he has many friends and family.

They have all been getting behind the team's run to the final, with the reaction and reception to their 3-1 semi-final triumph against Brazil really hitting home.

“Everyone's been buzzing after the semi-final, we really enjoyed it,” the Ulverston youngster said. “But in the morning we woke up and started to get prepared for the final.

“No doubt about it, everyone's social media accounts have been going a bit mad, including mine. The support from everyone is amazing, and I love the amount of messages I've been getting from local people – that means a lot.

“Friends and family have all been buzzing, everyone's so happy but there's one step to go yet.”