Spain's sister act: Nuria and Pilar Garrote

Twins Nuria and Pilar Garrote are two of Spain and Barcelona's rising stars, and credit their sisterly bond for their success on the pitch. Now preparing for a WU19 EURO semi-final showdown against France, the pair are channelling their sister act for a place in the final. UEFA.com is seeing double.

UEFA.com: Can people tell the difference between you?

Pilar: Yeah, there are some differences between us. When we first come into a team they look at us a lot, to see if they can spot them.

Nuria: I've got a few scars on my face, mostly from football so I call them my battle wounds, and I am slightly taller. But when we first come into a team, people do stare!

UEFA.com: What is each other's best quality?

Nuria: Pilar is always there for me. She's the biggest support I have, she's the person who I always turn to and I couldn't ask for anyone better.

Pilar: The best characteristic in Nuria is that she is always there for me too, especially when I am feeling low. She has a huge heart and is extremely generous.

UEFA.com: What annoys you about one another?

Nuria: We don't always agree on things but we get on really well. Her worst trait is probably being too nice to everyone else, and some people don't deserve her kindness.

Pilar: You can deliver a few home truths sometimes! Any footballer knows if they've had a bad game or made mistakes, but Nuria will be the first one to tell me that ... She'll say 'you shouldn't have done that' and I'll say 'I know, leave me alone!'

Pilar and Nuria (standing)©Sportsfile

UEFA.com: Do you each have a competitive streak when it comes to being better than the other?

Nuria: No, there's no competition. We're different footballers, I'm a defender and she's a midfielder. Pilar is a far more complete footballer on the pitch, she's far more versatile whereas I would consider myself a bit more physical, but there's no competition.

Pilar: I don't know who is the better player, but I know I always play better if I know she's in the team. We complement each other, I think we make one another more competitive, but we don't compete against each other.

UEFA.com: Is there a great sense of pride associate with being at Barcelona, one of the world's biggest clubs?

Nuria: We're coming into our sixth season at Barcelona so in some ways I guess we're used to it, but there are lots of great things about the club, of course. There's a great feeling of pride, we've been Barcelona supporters since we were little, too. It's an honour to play for them, Barcelona are a club with very strong values.

Pilar: They are a very demanding team and we learn from so many of the older players. When we're away for tournaments or matches, and see so many people wearing Barcelona shirts, you feel as if you're really part of something amazing. The club has earned that worldwide recognition through its style and philosophy, and it's an honour for us to represent the club.

Nuria and fellow defender Marta Turmo©Sportsfile

UEFA.com: France next in the semi-finals; what are you expecting?

Nuria: It's going to be a really tough game because France are quite similar to us and enjoy holding onto the ball. It's not going to be as physical as against Germany. France will try and keep possession and have us moving around the pitch quickly.

Pilar: Like Nuria said, it will be a very technical game and if we want to hurt them, our best tactic will be to keep the ball and not let it go! But if we want to be one of the best teams in Europe, or worldwide, we have to get used to playing sides like France.