TEL-AVIV: FA chairman David Bernstein has promised that Stuart Pearce will not be kept in doubt for long over whether his expiring contract asEnglandunder-21 coach is to be extended.

England’s 3-1 defeat by Norway on Saturday in their second outing at the European junior championships in Israel meant certain elimination in the first round.

Pearce’s youngsters had begun with a 1-0 defeat by Italy and wrap up their tournament against hosts Israel in Jerusalem on Tuesday.

Pearce has a good overall record and was handicapped at having to approach the finals with a half-strength squad. Around a dozen of his possible best players were either injured or – like Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Phil Jones and Danny Welbeck – taken by the senior England squad to Brazil.

Bernstein said: “We will be sitting down as a Club England team in the very near future, I suspect within the next couple of weeks to make that decision.

“Overall I have been very impressed with Stuart, absolutely. I think his record has been good, he has won an awful lot matches, qualified regularly for tournaments.

“This has been disappointing but I don’t think it should be taken totally out of context in terms of his long-term deliveries because on the whole he has delivered very well.”

Ex-Manchester City manager Pearce has been in charge of England Under-21s for the last six years. They reached the European semi-finals in 2007 and the final in 2009 where they lost 4-0 Germany.

#################