England denied by Turkey

Eye on record 
Lively forward Tuncay Sanli scored his ninth goal in eleven matches at this level with the opener for Turkey from close range on 14 minutes. Arsenal FC striker Francis Jeffers equalised eleven minutes later for his 13th goal in 13 matches, equalling Alan Shearer's Under-21 record for England. The 1-1 draw means that, after four games, Turkey have ten points to England's seven. Elsewhere in the group, Hélder Postiga scored both goals for Portugal in their 2-0 win against Slovakia in Bratislava to take them above England on nine points.

Final meeting 
The Czechs, who beat France 3-1 on a penalty shoot-out to win last year's competition, made it four wins out of four in Group 3 by winning 3-1 at home against Austria. Czech coach Werner Licka had extra reason to celebrate in Liberec as his son Mario opened the scoring on seven minutes. Austria responded well and levelled two minutes later through Roman Kienast. David Kobylík restored the Czechs' advantage before half-time and substitute Miroslav Slepicka sealed the win with a late goal.

Played in Italy 
The French kept up their 100 per cent record after five matches in Group 1 with a 3-0 triumph over Israel in Sicily. They took the lead after nine minutes when Rahamim Halis headed into his own net. Lille OSC's Matt Moussilou made it two in the 70th minute before Le Havre AC's Alou Diarra put the game beyond Israel eight minutes later. To make matters worse, Israel had Shlomo Edri sent off with six minutes to play.

Papadopoulos treble 
Greece continued their excellent form in Group 6, winning 6-2 in Northern Ireland. The star man for the Greeks, who have ten points from their first four games, was hat-trick hero Dimitrios Papadopoulos. Spain moved into second spot on seven points after a 5-0 success at home against Armenia. Two first-half penalties, converted by Mikel Arteta and Javier Portillo respectively, put the Spanish on their way before a Portillo second and two own goals after the break wrapped up the win.

Danish delight 
Four teams from Group 2 were in action. Denmark were 2-0 winners at home against Bosnia-Herzegovina. The three points mean the Danes leapfrog tonight's opponents into second place. However, Norway stay top of the pile on ten points after a 5-0 win in Luxembourg, that featured a double for Morten Gamst Pedersen.

Prize point 
Estonia took their first point of the campaign by drawing 1-1 at home against Bulgaria in Group 8, a result which kept the visitors on the bottom. Defender Yordan Todorov opened the scoring for Bulgaria after 20 minutes, but striker Ingemar Teever equalised half an hour later. It was a significant result for Estonia as they had suffered defeat in their last 21 qualifiers.

Seven up 
In Group 4, Poland made it four wins from four with a 7-0 victory against San Marino. There was no looking back after goals from Sebastian Olszar and Patryk Rachwal inside the first ten minutes and the Poles were always in control. The goals were spread around too, with only Bartosz Slusarski finding the net twice.

Scottish dismay 
Eiron Rizvanolli was the goalscoring hero for Albania as they triumphed 1-0 at home against the Republic of Ireland. It was the home side's first win in Group 10 and lifted them from last place to third in the section. Scotland missed the chance to take top spot in Group 5 after failing to make an early goal count against Lithuania in Vilnius, going down 2-1.