Nedum Onuoha says he leaned on the experience gained at Manchester City's academy as he played at centre-half for England U21 in their 0-0 draw with the Czech Republic this week.
"Before I started playing right back for City I was playing centre back for the Academy," he told the official FA web site, TheFA.com.
"I was thrust into the right back position when I went into the first team, so it's something I have done before but I just don't do it very often now."
"I was lucky because I played with Gary Cahill again," he continues. "When I made my debut for England at U20s it was him I played with then, so it was easier to get used to. I felt quite comfortable.
"I thought I could do better but I think everyone from the team is saying that. We stopped them from scoring, which is one thing, but we're disappointed we didn't score ourselves because we had a few good chances.
"Although we didn't create as many as usual, we still had a few. Maybe that is something we've got to work on before the next game against Italy."
Of Thursday's crucial game against the much-fancied Italians, Onuoha concludes:
"It's a massive game for the two of us, obviously Italy lost on Monday, so it will probably be a game where there's no holding back because both teams could really do with the win. It should be an open end to end game."
