Women's U17 EURO: Group B preview
Monday, May 2, 2016
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Holders Spain and Germany have won all but one of the eight UEFA Women's U17 titles between them but can Italy or debutants the Czech Republic stop them in Group B?
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Czech Republic
Best performance: first women's final tournament at any level
Qualifying round: Azerbaijan 4-1, Georgia 13-0, Belgium 2-4 (Group 6 runners-up)
Elite round: France 1-1, Republic of Ireland 1-0, Hungary 2-0 (Group 3 winners)
Top scorers: Michela Dubcová, Šárka Krištofová 3
Karel Rada, coach: "Our entire football community was rooting for us to qualify and we did it. The players saw that and it was another driving force for us to succeed. We have the talent, our girls have played together for a number of matches. Next year we host the WU17 EURO, so it is also good that the younger players will experience the atmosphere of a final tournament."
Germany
Best performance: winners 2007/08, 2008/09, 2011/12, 2013/14
Qualifying round: bye
Elite round: Switzerland 2-0, Russia 3-0, Austria 4-1 (Group 1 winners)
Top scorer: Anna-Lena Stolze 3
Anouschka Bernhard, coach: "I would not say the favourites' tag is something we expect but it is not extra pressure either – it is something in between. We are part of the final tournament, so there is always pressure on the girls. When it comes to German national women's teams, we have some huge traditions in this tournament – the girls know that, they are very motivated for themselves, they want to win."
Italy
Best performance: third place 2013/14
Qualifying round: Bosnia and Herzegovina 5-0, FYR Macedonia 4-0, Northern Ireland 5-0 (Group 5 winners)
Elite round: Greece 4-1, Netherlands 2-0, Finland 2-2 (Group 4 winners)
Top scorer: Sofia Cantore 6
Rita Guarino, coach: "The girls were extraordinary. It took a lot of mental and physical resources, but we believed until the end, remembering everything we had done, and we qualified."
Spain (holders)
Best performance: winners 2009/10, 2010/11, 2014/15
Qualifying round: Armenia 9-0, Portugal 4-1, Greece 6-0 (Group 3 winners)
Elite round: Ukraine 4-0, Northern Ireland 5-0, Denmark 2-0 (Group 2 winners)
Top scorer: Lorena Navarro 9
María Antonia Is, coach: "We have been drawn in a very tough group. But it is very important for us to try to repeat last year's success under Pedro López – both for me as a coach and for the team – and to defend the trophy. However, I have a lot of respect for our opponents and cannot say that we will win the title. The main target is to qualify for the World Cup."