Thoroughbreds meet in Melgaço

Italy, winners of four of the last six UEFA European Under-21 Championships, are in Portugal for a friendly tonight as preparations continue for this summer's edition in Germany.

A versus B
Seven of the eight finalists are on duty, with the other qualifiers Belarus having beaten Latvian league side FC Dinaburg 1-0 yesterday. As well as Portugal versus Italy, Serbia and Montenegro meet Switzerland in another fixture which pits together teams from Groups A and B. Elsewhere, Sweden tackle England, Croatia travel to Bosnia-Herzegovina and the hosts Germany face Georgia's A side.

In-form striker
It is the fixture in Melgaço, where two thoroughbreds of youth football meet, which catches the eye. The Italians drew 1-1 with Greece in the first round of U21 friendlies in February, yet will field a stronger side against the Portuguese as defenders Daniele Bonera and Emilano Moretti have recovered from injuries along with Alberto Gilardino, the Parma AC striker who took his Serie A tally to 14 this season with two weekend goals in the 4-0 victory against Empoli FC.

'Excellent players'
His fellow forward Giuseppe Sculli was also on the mark in AC Chievo Verona's 2-2 draw at AC Milan. "We have some excellent players," said Azzurrini coach Claudio Gentile. "I've already got my squad in mind for the European Championship but we still have to put the finishing touches to certain things. The goal in these matches is to show what we can do."

'Wonderful match'
The Portuguese have called up Ednilson and Amoreirinha for the fixture as Carlos Martins and Pedro Ribeiro have been forced to withdraw. Coach José Romão said: "It's a great test for us but there are still margins for us to make mistakes, something we cannot afford to do in the championship."

Season nears
Portugal open their campaign against Sweden in Mannheim on Friday 28 May. The Swedes face England in Kristianstad today with a team short on match practice as the 2004 Allsvenskan season only gets under way next week. "I think we'll be alright," said coach Torbjörn Nilsson. "The bulk of the players are fully fit and looking forward to the season, while some of the England players may be a bit jaded."

German experiment
The remaining sides in Group B, Germany and Switzerland, met in February with Bastian Schweinsteiger settling it in the Germans' favour. Coach Uli Stielike plans to experiment in matches against Georgia today and Greece on 27 April. "The games will act as personal qualifiers for the players. We will also test a flat back three and back four to see which works best."

'Extra motivation'
Croatia will open the championship against Serbia and Montenegro in Oberhausen on 27 May but for the moment are focused solely on beating neighbours Bosnia-Herzegovina today. "I'm expecting a competitive match," said coach Martin Novoselac. "The players have extra motivation to impress ahead of the tournament and I'm sure they'll do their best."

Regulars missing
Serbia and Montenegro did not play the last round of friendlies and could be ring-rusty in Smederevo against Switzerland tomorrow. Regular No1 Vladimir Disljenkovic, promoted to the senior ranks, is among a host of unavailable players - a fate which has also befallen Switzerland. Coach Vladimir Petrovic said: "This is a crucial competition for our players: I've told them that this could set the tone for their careers. The Swiss are not artists but they work hard."