Spain first to Under-17 finals

Spain qualified for the UEFA European Under-17 Championship finals in dramatic fashion as their 2-0 victory against Poland, coupled with a 1-0 reverse for Belgium against hosts Northern Ireland, allowed Ginés Meléndez's side to top elite round Group 4.

Both Spain and Northern Ireland had trailed leaders Belgium by three points going into the final elite round group matches. But the final-day results conspired to send the former through via a better three-way head-to-head record against their two rivals thanks to goals from Paco Alcácer at either end of the game.

Spain made the ideal start in Coleraine when a free-kick from Rafael Alcántara was headed in by Paco inside three minutes and they could have extended their advantage when Jesé Rodriguez curled wide after an explosive run. Poland were more competitive after the interval but never truly tested goalkeeper Adrián Ortola while Edu Campabadal had a double effort blocked as Spain grew stronger in the latter stages and Sergi Darder's free-kick was tipped over.

With one minutes left Julien Tadrowski fouled Sergi Darder in the area and Valencia CF's Paco dispatched the penalty to confirm victory. Poland's misery was completed when Sebastian Duda received a second yellow card in added time.