France suffer injury setbacks

With the first legs of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying play-off ties completed, the teams vying for a place in the finals are reflecting on their performances and rebuilding for the second leg after a series of injuries and suspensions. uefa.com rounds up the news.

France will be without defender Gaël Clichy and midfielder Jérémy Toulalan for the return leg of their play-off against England on Tuesday after both went off during Friday’s 1-1 first-leg draw. They are joined on the injury list by forward Bryan Bergougnoux (shoulder) who was replaced in the squad by Nicolas Fauvergue at the beginning of the week. René Girard, who has also called up Toulouse FC defender Lucien Aubey, said: "Friday was probably our best game of the season. But if England play away as they did at home, it is not an advantage to host them in the second leg."

Their opponents on Tuesday, England, remain without Nigel Reo-Coker, Leighton Baines, Steven Taylor and Aaron Lennon, who all withdrew from the squad earlier this week, while Jerome Thomas (hamstring) and Gary O'Neil (calf) are also struggling to make the second leg at Nancy's Stade Marcel Picot.

Slaven Bilić will leave hospital following back surgery to return to the touchline as Croatia attempt to overhaul a two-goal deficit against Serbia and Montenegro on Tuesday. His replacement in the first leg, assistant coach Aljoša Asanović, was sent off on Saturday, and will be confined to the stands for the return as the side attempt to progress.

Serbia and Montenegro have a number of problems for the tie, with no less than four players suspended. Boško Janković and Danko Lazović were both dismissed in the first leg, while Miloš Krasić and Simon Vukcević are also banned after receiving yellow cards. Coach Dragomir Okuka has therefore called up Dejan Milovanović, Miroslav Radović and Ljubiša Vukelja, while Aleksandar Trišović returns from his own suspension. "The newcomers are good," Okuka said. "All of them played in qualification round and I believe in them. I am optimistic."

After scoring a hat-trick in Belgium's 3-2 first-leg victory against Ukraine, Kevin Vandenbergh is hoping his side can seal their progress in style on Tuesday. "I hope we will play in a full stadium in Lokeren - that would be beautiful. Scoring three away goals is an important step towards qualification. But Ukraine also scored twice so it isn't over yet."

Olexiy Mykhaylichenko was disappointed after Ukraine's defeat, as he was left to rue a series of errors. "We made more defensive mistakes today than in the whole of qualifying," he said. "We know that Belgium are a solid team who play good team football and will make us pay for any mistakes. We've made enough of them today that even the laziest of sides would have been able to take advantage. A lot of players have underperformed."

Coach Claudio Gentile will again be without forwards Rolando Bianchi and Raffale Palladino and midfield player Alberto Aquilani as Italy look to build on the 1-1 draw in Hungary on Saturday. "I liked our approach in the first leg," Gentile said. "We will have to play with the same spirit. A goalless draw would be enough for us, but we will try to play an attacking game because we’re not used to only defending. We must try to score goals – it's the only way to avoid any kind of risk."

Russia coach Andrei Chernyshov was in determined mood as he reflected on his side's qualification hopes following their 1-0 home defeat against Denmark. "Nothing is lost yet and Russia have every chance of avenging Denmark in the return leg," he said. "I started the game with [Ivan] Saenko as the only striker because I hoped our attacking midfielders could create chances. Still, we were looking good and we created a number of chances - but failed to convert them."

Portugal will be without the suspended Manuel Fernandes when they meet Switzerland on Wednesday. Hugo Viana is also doubtful after limping off during the 1-1 draw in the first leg, but Agostinho Oliveira remains confident: "This result means we can draw 0-0, or win by a narrow margin in the home leg and go through - it is a good result. We played very well in the first half, and were superb at times, but in the second half, the Swiss managed to take over and we had a few problems."

Dieter Eilts expects a stern test when Germany face the Czech Republic in Leverkusen, despite leading 2-0 after the first leg. "Michael Rensing kept us in the game on Friday with some excellent saves. The team was extremely nervous and we gave up possession too lightly. We are obviously happy with the result but we still have a tough task awaiting us in the return leg."

Ever-present so far in qualifying, Milan Latka will be suspended for the second leg of the Czech Republic's play-off after he was booked in the first encounter. Daniel Pudil returns from his own ban, however, while uncapped Miroslav Matula has been added to the squad as Ladislav Škorpil looks to buttress his forward line. "We are not a broken team," the coach said. "We will fight until the last minute."