France advance at Spain's expense

France will join Group A winners Germany in the semi-finals of the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship after they ended Spain's hopes of advancing with a 2-1 victory in Kävlinge.

Gamble paid off
Spain went into today's encounter at the Högalids IP stadium in second place in the group, courtesy of their 1-0 defeat of Sweden on the opening day, but they were undone by Bruno Bini's decision to throw on an extra forward in the first half. Elodie Ramos and Claire Morel were on target for France, who will play the runners-up from Group B in the last four, with Saray García replying late on for Spain.

Renewed verve
Bini, the Paolo Coelho quoting France coach, had been critical of his forwards following a below-par display against Sweden last time out but they again played with the same verve which saw them cause Germany numerous problems in the first game of the championship, a 3-2 defeat.

Ramos in form
France captain Ramos was at the heart of much of her side's play throughout and the first clear opportunity of the match went her way in the eleventh minute. In the 35th minute Bini replaced central midfield player Marie Claude Herlem with striker Sandrine Rouquet and the gamble paid dividends inside five minutes.

'Gift' of a goal
With Rouquet closing in menacingly, Spain goalkeeper Maria José Pons collided with Iraia Iturregui leaving Ramos with the simple task of chipping the ball into an empty net for a goal which Spain coach Ignacio Quereda described as "a gift" from which his side never really recovered.

All-important goal
With Sweden trailing Germany 1-0 at half-time in the other group game, Spain just needed to find an equaliser to finish second in the section but it was the French who struck the all-important second goal. Ophélie Meilleroux's long clearance out of defence in the 66th minute looked harmless but took a wicked bounce in front of the last Spanish defender leaving Rouquet with a clear run on goal.

Leading scorer
The Toulouse FC striker squared the ball for Morel who took one touch before rifling it in for 2-0. The goal lifted Morel to the top of the goalscoring charts with Germany forward Barbera Müller. Both have three strikes to their name but Morel's hopes of adding to that tally may have been dashed after she limped off with five minutes remaining.

Battling valiantly
By that stage Spain were battling valiantly for a leveller after Saray, the captain, had hauled her side back into contention with a left-footed finish in the 81st minute after being set up by Priscila Borja, the diminutive midfield player who grew in influence as the game wore on. That proved to be Spain's final fling, with the last chance of the match falling to France defender Anne Laure Casselaux just before she departed on a stretcher.

Team spirit
Bini attributed his side's progress in the competition to the team spirit in the camp, something he tries to enhance by inspiring the players through thought. At half-time Bini revealed he merely stood on a chair for two minutes and gave a few simple instructions before leaving his team in the dressing room to discuss their second-half tactics among themselves.

'Football is magic'
It worked, but not before a few heart-stopping moments late on. "I am 47 but I aged ten years in the final minutes," he said. "Then at the end I felt 12 years old and that is why football is magic. The team and I were able to dream when the referee blew the final whistle."

What might have been
While France have the last four and this summer's FIFA Women's Under-19 World Cup to look forward to, Spain are left to reflect on what might have been. Coach Querada was in reflective mood afterwards, saying: "The first half was crucial as we didn't adapt to the game and the French dominated us for that reason. You never know how players are going to react in a big game and by the time my players did it was too late."