Confidence high as U21s prepare for play-offs

UEFA.com rounds up the reaction to Friday's play-off draw for the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

England v Romania
Emil Sandoi described England as "a force at all levels" but insisted his Group 1 winners would not be overawed after being drawn against the 2009 finalists. "As I said before the draw, regardless of the opponent qualifying will go to the wire with each team having an equal chance," he explained. "We proved in the group stage, when we earned the most points of all the ten group winners, that we can match any opponent, no matter their name." England's Stuart Pearce added: "This was a really tough draw as Romania are a very strong team. Compared to our team that went all the way to the final in 2009, we still have a bit of catching up to do, but this team is improving and time will tell if we can reach the same quality as two seasons ago."

Netherlands v Ukraine
Ukraine coach Pavlo Yakovenko was also bracing for a tough task after drawing the Netherlands in a rematch of the 2006 final, the first of the Jong Oranje's back-to-back titles. "We had a very strong group with France and Belgium and now we have the Netherlands, one of the best European teams," he said. "We will prepare, study them and look for their weak spots. Everyone knows their strengths: their fast passing game and high individual skill, but we have a month to find a way to get past them." His counterpart Cor Pot also feels he knows what to expect. "Everyone knows how these kinds of teams play: very defensive and looking to counterattack," he said. "They often score in away matches, so we have to be wary. But I'm full of confidence because we have a good team ourselves. Every opponent fears us."

Spain v Croatia
"Both teams are at exactly the same level," Spain coach Luis Milla said of his side's tie with Croatia. "They only lost one game and drew two [to get here] and always produce good teams with a lot of talent; they are physical and well-organised." Croatia U21 striker Ante Vukušić is looking forward to the challenge. "We got the most difficult opponent so it couldn't be worse draw for us," he said. "They are an excellent team and it will be a real pleasure to test ourselves against them. They will be two very attractive matches."

Switzerland v Sweden
Sweden coach Jörgen Lennartsson is prepared for "a tough challenge" after the 2009 semi-finalists were paired with Group 2 winners Switzerland. "We could have been drawn against Spain or England, but all the teams that have reached the play-offs are good," he said. "Switzerland have a lot of technical players. They also made it to the play-offs in the qualifiers for the EURO held in Sweden. Spain won that tie in the fifth minute of added time."

Iceland v Scotland
Coach Billy Stark believes Scotland face a "tough couple of games" against an Iceland side coach Eyjólfur Sverrisson says is making history as they aim to reach the finals for the first time. "Everyone wanted to avoid Spain and England, so we're happy to have steered clear of those two," Stark told UEFA.com. "On the other hand, Iceland won't be easy. They beat Germany 4-1 on their own patch and were the highest goalscorers in qualification, so we're under no illusions." Sverrisson added: "My boys are ready. We are writing a new chapter in Icelandic football and have never gone so far. We are determined to go further and not stop before the finals."

Czech Republic v Greece
Czech Republic coach Jakub Dovalil warned that Greece are "a very strong side" after being paired with the Group 9 winners. "They won a group with England and Portugal," pointed out Dovalil, whose side finished top of Group 5 ahead of Iceland and holders Germany. "This generation is very good; we drew 0-0 with them at the U19 European Championship at home in 2008 and several players on both sides will meet again." Greece coach Giorgos Georgiadis said: "We will now focus on studying the Czech Republic. Our aim is to get to Denmark for the finals. I am optimistic because I have confidence in our players and our team."

Italy v Belarus
Italy only reached the play-offs by beating Wales on Tuesday, but coach Pierluigi Casiraghi is already looking to Denmark. "We want to go one step further than in 2009, when we reached the semi-finals," he told UEFA.com. "We maybe lack the extraordinary talents of [Mario] Balotelli and [Robert] Acquafresca from 2009, but this team is better tactically, more organised and physically strong. I do not know a great deal about Belarus except that they are very good both tactically and physically." Belarus advanced as one of the four-best runners up and coach Georgi Kondratiev said: "We were going to be underdogs whatever, so I didn't care who we were drawn against." Midfielder Pavel Nekhaychik added: "Who would have thought that Iceland would beat Germany and qualify? Or that France, Portugal and Germany would fall at the group stage? I don't mind playing Italy."

The winners of the seven ties to be played on 8 and 12 October will join hosts Denmark at the final tournament in Aalborg, Aarhus, Viborg and Herning from 11 to 25 June 2011.