Germany spearhead challenge

by Kevin Ashby

Germany, winners of the inaugural UEFA Women's Under-19 European Championship in May, will spearhead a four-pronged challenge from this continent when the FIFA World Cup for players of this age group gets under way tomorrow.

Standard bearers
The Germans have long been the standard bearers of women's football on this side of the Atlantic, the success last season of 1. FFC Frankfurt in the UEFA Women's Cup, a pan-European competition, underlining the country's strength. But it is not just at senior level that Germany are so impressive; the U19 side proved investment at grassroots level is paying dividends by defeating France 3-1 in Sweden to claim the 2002 European crown.

Huge crowds expected
Silvia Neid's side find themselves pitted against the French once more in Canada, the venue for the 12-team U19 world championship, another inaugural event designed to bridge the gap between junior and senior women's football. Three cities - Edmonton, Vancouver and Victoria – will host matches, and with 40,000 tickets sold in advance it promises to be three weeks to remember.

Never-say-die attitude
Germany and France are in Group B alongside the skilful Mexicans and unpredictable Brazilians – a team French coach Bruno Bini said it will be a "pleasure" to play against. Germany twice proved France’s nemesis in Sweden, winning the opening game of the competition, 3-2, and the final. On each occasion France scored first, only to be denied by the never-say-die attitude of the Germans.

Spirit embodied
Viola Odebrecht, Germany's outstanding midfield player, is the embodiment of such spirit. Her displays in Sweden were of such quality that she reaped deserved praise from the UEFA Technical Study Group. Although Odebrecht is the fulcrum of the German challenge, she is given able assistance by the front two, Anja Mittag and Barbara Müller, while Annelie Brendel provides skill and pace down the right flank.

Defensive talents
The French side is also littered with quality and the central defensive duo of Ophélie Meilleroux and Laura Georges caught the eye of the North American coaches when they attended the European Championship to assess potential opposition. The challenge from North America is likely to be a formidable one: Canada as hosts will be determined to impress, while the United States boasts the only professional women's league in the world, a competition which acts as a honeypot to Europe's finest players.

Surprise package
The US are first in action on Saturday, with England the opposition. Hope Powell's side were the surprise package in Sweden, eliminating Norway in the group stage before narrowly losing their semi-final against Germany 1-0 in a game England deserved better from. Chinese Taipei and Australia, who are sure to be competitive, complete Group C, but Powell is well aware who England's chief opposition will be.

'Tremendous achievement'
"We expect to have difficult games from the start and it will be hard being in the same group as the USA," said the woman who oversees the female game in England. "But it will be a good experience for the players to come up against non-European teams and to get an idea of how these teams play. The squad has done tremendously to qualify and now we're looking forward to the tournament."

Stiff task
Denmark defeated England in the European Championship before losing to France in the semi-finals. Led by charismatic coach Per Rud they face a stiff task in their opening Group A game on Sunday against Canada. There will be no room for nerves, with the winner of the match likely to win a group completed by Nigeria and Japan.

Party poopers?
If the Danes can produce a shock and poop Canada's party, they will meet one of the best third-placed teams in the last eight. A runners-up spot to Canada would mean Denmark facing the second-placed team in Group B, almost certainly Germany or France. The winners of that section are likely to meet England in the quarter-finals. All that means is that if the competition goes to form, at least two European nations will find themselves in the last four.