England and France face 'tough' semi

Just as in 2007, England and France meet in a UEFA European Under-17 Championship semi-final and, having already drawn this season, a tight contest is in prospect in Vaduz on Thursday afternoon.

England, the only semi-finalists never to have won the junior European title, have the best record of all the last four, with an unblemished nine victories in this campaign including three against the Czech Republic, Greece and Turkey in the group stage in Liechtenstein. France, however, began with a loss to Spain but recovered to defeat Portugal and Switzerland, just as they bounced back from going down in their first Elite round match against Turkey to qualify for these finals.

John Peacock, England manager three years ago when they beat France 1-0 in the last four in Belgium, and again at the helm in Liechtenstein, told UEFA.com: "It's nice to be in another semi-final against our rivals and competitors for many years so we're looking forward to it. [In 2007] there were lots of incidents and close calls but on the night we managed to secure that final place. Let's hope it's the same."

More pertinently, these teams played in the Algarve Tournament in February, drawing 1-1 after Benik Afobe's opener was cancelled out by Anthony Koura. "It was probably about even on the day, a fair result, and I'm sure it will be as close again," said Peacock, whose side went on to win that tournament.

"[France are] very similar now in terms of personnel and the way they've approached the games. I have to credit the French; they played very well against Spain and came back from that strongly. In the third game they needed to get a result and did that. I know what to expect from the French, it will be a tough game."

With progress assured before Monday's last group game with Turkey, Peacock was able to rest several key players but the likes of Connor Wickham and Joshua McEachran should return to face France. Les Mini-Bleus, meanwhile, have right-back Youssouf Sabaly, midfielder Vincent Leroux and forward Billel Omrani back from suspension.

"It is a satisfaction to have everyone available, we have only minor injuries," France coach Guy Ferrier said. "We were unsettled by the number of yellow and red cards we have received and wondered if we should be playing so physically. But I am very happy with the mental strength of our team, who have been able to play well even with ten men and this mental strength is very important in a competition like this."

As for England, Ferrier added: "It will be a very difficult match, especially physically. We are going to go through various aspects in training to overcome that physical factor."