England U21 striker Leroy Lita has revealed he received abusive text messages from fans ahead of his scoring performance against Italy on Thursday night.

Reading forward Lita scored his country's second goal after missing a late penalty in the first game.

Lita revealed last night that he received abusive text messages from members of the public who had got hold of his mobile phone number but added that it only spurred him on.

"They left me a few messages and texts," he said. "I had a lot of stick from random people after the penalty. They were giving me a hard time, but I like it.

"I just wanted to get back on to the pitch and play again."