Georgia glee at progress with Portugal

Portugal and Georgia moved through from UEFA European Under-17 Championship qualifying round Group 10 at the expense of Cyprus and hosts Scotland.

Georgia through
Rui Bento's Portugal side clinched first place with a match to spare by beating Georgia and Cyprus, who both defeated Scotland. Georgia needed to win against Cyprus on Sunday to pip them to second place and the other Elite round berth, and secured a 4-2 win.

Scotland out
On the opening day Scotland, fielding Somalian-born 14-year-old Islam Feruz as a substitute, lost 2-1 to Cyprus. Feruz set up Callum McGregor for the opener on 62 minutes but Pieros Sotiriou equalised and Nikos Englezou won it in added time. Ricardo Esgaio put Portugal ahead against Georgia before Betinho's penalty with eight minutes left won the game. Scotland's hopes were ended by a 2-1 defeat against Georgia; McGregor cancelled out Giorgi Chanturia's opener but Davit Skhirtladze's 52nd-minute goal made the difference. Cyprus led Portugal at half-time through Sotiriou but substitute Bruma and Betinho turned the tables.

Cyprus denied
Top spot secure, Portugal drew 2-2 with Scotland as McGregor and Jamie Walker struck for the hosts before João Carlos and Tobias Figueiredo levelled. In the game for second place, Nikos Englezou missed an early Cyprus penalty and on the half-hour Giorgi Gagnidze put Georgia ahead. Skhirtladze doubled the lead but Sotiriou pulled one back before the break and Alexis Chatzigeorgiou levelled on 50 minutes. Georgia were now facing elimination but Chanturia scored on 61 and 70 minutes to take his side through despite David Khotcholava's late red card.

Qualifiers' reaction
Georgia coach George Devdariani said: "First, and foremost, I am very happy with the result and to have qualified for the Elite round. Secondly, I am delighted with the performance from my players. We never stopped playing positively and attacking. For Georgian football as a whole, this is a great achievement. It's pretty well known that, football-wise, we in Georgia are not in a very good situation right now. But I believe the example set by the Under-17 team here in Scotland this week can be a massive boost for football in our country. It can have a positive influence at all levels." Bento added: "Our aim was to qualify for the Elite eound and we did that. It's also important that we won the group. But, at this level, the biggest priority is the development of the young players. We produced some strong performances against good opposition and that's the most encouraging thing."
 
Mathie reflects
As for the eliminated sides, Cyprus coach Georgios Constantinou said: "We are disappointed because we needed the draw and we thought we could get it and Scotland manager Ross Mathie, who led his nation to the 2008 finals, admitted: "We are a little bit disappointed not to have qualified. It's the first time in six years that we have not reached the Elite round. Playing at home adds a little bit of extra pressure, but I think the boys have been excellent. Despite not progressing, there are plenty of positives we can take from this going forward. I think this group of players has a lot to offer, as we showed for large spells against Portugal. We will go forward from here as a team and we will be better for it."