Paul Simpson has said he hopes his side’s triumph at the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea will pave the way for future England teams to achieve success at senior tournaments. England defeated Venezuela in Suwon on Sunday to record the nation’s first victory at a major global tournament since 1966, with Simpson insisting being crowned world champions “means everything” to his young group.

“I hope it has a positive impact on English football,” Simpson, the former Shrewsbury Town and Stockport County manager, said. “I do not really know what is going to come but it is part of the development that we are trying to create football players who are capable of being successful at senior tournaments and hopefully this will go a long way to achieving that. I honestly don’t know what it means for English football. But for the Under-20s it means everything. This is what we have worked so hard for.”

England seal Under-20 World Cup glory as Dominic Calvert-Lewin strikes Read more

Dominic Calvert-Lewin, the match-winner, is, along with Sir Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters, one of only three England players to score in a World Cup final. The Everton forward, who started the season with Sheffield United in League One, slotted the ball past Wuilker Faríñez in the 35th minute after the Venezuela goalkeeper had saved his first effort.

“It is hard to put into words what that feeling is like when the referee blew the final whistle,” Calvert-Lewin said. “We have wanted this so much that to come back to England as part of a select few who have won the World Cup means everything.

“To be one of only three Englishmen to have scored in a World Cup final is amazing. I probably should have scored the first time, to be honest. I just anticipated the keeper parrying the ball and tried to keep my composure and managed to put it away. The feeling was just relief, to be honest. I can’t remember what I did – ran to the corner flag and hit it, I think, but then all the lads came over.”

Calvert-Lewin said he hoped the squad members would now be able to secure more playing time in the Premier League. “We have proved we are as good as any country and hopefully there will be opportunities for the lads next season. I have had a taste of it last season with Everton and I just want to show I am capable of playing regularly next season.”

Lewis Cook, the Bournemouth midfielder who captained England to victory at the tournament, said: “It is the best day of my life so far.” Freddie Woodman, the Newcastle United goalkeeper, said: “To be champions of the world – it is amazing. Hopefully we have done a lot of people proud back home.”

Simpson was asked in March to take charge of the Under-20s from Aidy Boothroyd, who moved up to the Under-21s, following a reshuffle in the wake of Gareth Southgate’s appointment as England manager in September. Southgate said the Under-20s “have raised the bar for everybody” in the wake of their achievements.

England win Under-20 World Cup final after 1-0 victory over Venezuela – as it happened Read more

Simpson said this England squad, which, as well as Calvert-Lewin, includes Ademola Lookman and Dominic Solanke, outlined their ambitions to win the Under-20 World Cup shortly after he took charge. “I asked them the question, ‘What do you think you can achieve?’ and they told me they thought they could win a World Cup,” he said. “We said if we want to win a World Cup we have to be absolutely committed from that moment on and they have been.

“This is the reward for some incredible work, some incredible sacrifices, and I do not think you can get a better feeling than what that felt like at the end of the game when the referee blew that whistle. We are world champions and we have waited 51 years to be able to say that again as an England team. It is an incredible feeling and I do not think it will ever go away if I am honest with you.”

Simpson also said that while it was not his team’s “best performance” against Venezuela, who had a penalty saved by Woodman after 74 minutes, he is bursting with pride after ending England’s 51-year wait to again be crowned world champions.

“I cannot sit here and say I thought it was our best performance. We really had to battle in that second half because Venezuela put us under so much pressure but the players defended for their lives. I suppose to win a World Cup you have to do that. There are more ways than one to win a game of football and sometimes you have to defend and that is what we did.

“I think it is a really difficult thing to put into words. I said after the semi-final that I did not think there was a prouder Englishman anywhere in the world but I think I have just topped that today. I cannot believe the feeling of pride that I have got and I know it is the same for the players.”

Meanwhile, the BBC has defended its coverage of England’s World Cup victory after failing to show the trophy presentation on BBC2, insisting that almost the entire British population could witness the celebrations via the BBC red button. The BBC secured coverage of the match, which was originally only to be available on Eurosport, at a late stage. The match finished at 12.50pm and BBC2 showed some brief highlights and studio reaction before switching to coverage of the World Triathlon Series.

“We showed live coverage of the whole Under-20s World Cup final, including the trophy presentation,” read a BBC statement released to the Guardian. “The BBC2 programme included reaction to the victory before we switched to the red button – which is available to 97% of the population – for the extended period up to the trophy being lifted. This allowed us to show the scheduled live coverage of the UK leg of the World Triathlon Series on BBC2.”