Stuart Pearce believes the willingness of his youngsters to play through the pain barrier shows how seriously England Under-21s are now taken.

The coach was angered in the summer when David Bentley pulled out of the European Championships through tiredness, while Gabriel Agbonlahor could not be contacted to confirm his call-up.

But Pearce has been encouraged by a change in attitude.

Agbonlahor has returned to the squad for the 2009 qualifiers and travelled to play against Portugal this week, even though his twisted knee made him a doubt.

The Aston Villa forward just failed a fitness test for last night's 1-1 draw in Agueda, but captain Steven Taylor played 45 minutes carrying a back injury.

Pearce also had to send a host of injured players back to their clubs before the international break, despite eagerness to be part of the squad.

"It would have been easy for 'Gabby' to say he didn't want to travel," said Pearce. "He wants to be part of this set-up. The more that do that, the better it is for me."

Agbonlahor picked up his injury on Friday against Bulgaria — and although England lost their 100% record in qualifiers with their result in Portugal, a draw keeps them on course for the play-offs to reach the finals.

"It shows how far we've come when I see the likes of 'Gabby' desperate to be here," said Pearce. "He came off on Friday, and I thought he had no chance.

"The injury settled down, and the treatment was good. We feel he is very close to being fit and think he will be fit for his club this weekend. But we couldn't take that chance."

Pearce has assured club managers that the fitness of his players is of the highest importance to the under-21s staff.

"I'm frustrated with it as well," he added. "I want to take the players away from their clubs and gain experience as well as camaraderie and a good performance — then return them to their clubs fully fit.

"Clubs can rest assured that we do everything to make sure the individual is taken care of.

"It would have been easy for me to put pressure on 'Gabby' to play; he was very close to passing a fitness test, but it wouldn't be fair on him or Aston Villa. That is my main concern.

"At half-time, I had Steven Taylor telling me he was fit to play on. My medical staff tell me he isn't.

"When you are in the technical area and you have the pressures of being 1-0 down to Portugal, it's easy to say 'give me another 15 minutes'. I'm not prepared to do that, so I have to tell him to come off."

Pearce's youngsters remained top of Group 3 with their battling draw in Portugal, Adam Johnson cancelling out an early penalty by Vieirinha.

"It was massive," said goalkeeper Joe Hart. "We proved we have strength in depth with this result.

"People were dropping off like flies, but others came through like heroes. We've all dug in and got the result."

England ended up with none of their first-choice defence on the field at the final whistle, while Theo Walcott put in a mature performance on his own in attack.

"The injuries affect you, but you see players hungry to impress and help the team," Hart added.