Chesnakov pegs back France

France threw away a two-goal lead in Gueugnon as Volodymyr Chesnakov struck twice to earn Ukraine a share of the spoils in Group 8 in qualifying for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

Modeste opener
The home side took the lead after only three minutes when Anthony Modeste latched on to Paul Baysse's long ball and, after Yaroslav Rakitskiy had missed a chance to clear, coolly slotted the ball to the left of Ukraine goalkeeper Anton Kanibolotskiy. Les Bleuets were dominating proceedings, but Ukraine suddenly came to life and goalkeeper Johnny Placide was forced to make a splendid save off a long-range shot from Yevgen Konoplyanka.

Ukraine recovery
The 2006 runners-up, however, conceded again soon after when Mamadou Sakho leapt high to head in Bakary Sako's 26th-minute corner. Ukraine were down but not out and they were given fresh hope a minute before the break when Placide failed to hold Rakitskiy's 35-metre free-kick, allowing Chesnakov to tuck in the rebound. Eighteen minutes into the second half Chesnakov struck again in similar fashion to pull Ukraine back on to level terms. France pushed for a winner but were unable to find a way through, to leave them level on four points with Ukraine after two matches, two behind early pacesetters Belgium, who both sides meet early next month.