BLOG - 2014 European Under-17 Championship: Matchday One Preview
Preview of Matchday One (matches to be played on Friday 9th May 2014)
Group A
Matches to be played at the Ta' Qali National stadium, capacity 17,000
Netherlands v Turkey
The Netherlands will be hoping to gain three points as they attempt to ensure qualification with wins over Turkey and Malta before meeting England in the final group match. While they have an excess of creative players looking to supply forwards Van Der Moot and Berenstein, the Turks have a strong defence that kept clean sheets in four of their six qualifying games and will look to counter through the pacy duo of Alici and captain Unal. Between them they scored eight of Turkey's nine goals in qualifying and Alici plays off the athletic Unal, who is physically dominant at this level, so if the Dutch dominate the ball they will have to remain alert to the counter.
The Netherlands had a much more assured progression to this stage, winning all six of their qualifiers while facing tougher games than the Turks, who won four of theirs and only qualified on penalties after a goalless draw against Poland. The form guide suggests a Dutch win but if the Turks can frustrate them they'll fancy themselves to cause an upset through their front two.
The match kicks off at 10.00 AM BST and is live on Eurosport 2
England v Malta
The national stadium where Malta begin their tournament is built on a former RAF air base (cue teams crash-landing, looking for lift-off, putting on the afterburners, scoring with rockets, saluting their fans and having a blast of a time as the crowd breaks the sound barrier!). This is a big event in Malta and a large partisan crowd is expected for their opener against their former British masters. With matches of this nature England coach John Peacock has tended to place his trust in his capable second string with the Middlesbrough duo of centre back Dael Fry and midfielder Callum Cooke, Southampton winger Josh Sims, Manchester United winger Demetri Mitchell and Crystal Palace right-back Mandela Egbo all favoured to start, with the heavy weaponry called upon only if the result is not going as wished.
It is possible Peacock will consider the occasion requiring of a strong side but with Turkey three days later, rotation is likely to be the order of the day. None of the three involved in Monday's FA Youth Cup final (Dominic Solanke, Isaiah Brown, Patrick Roberts) will start, which probably guarantees a place for Tottenham's Josh Onomah, who is in and out of the team as tactics require as neither a reserve nor certain first team member. For Malta the occasion is the victory and they and their fans will be certain to enjoy it while trying to stifle England's attack.
The match kick off at 05.00 PM BST and is live on Eurosport 2
Group B
Matches to be played at Gozo, capacity 1,644
Germany v Switzerland
Two teams who know each other well meet on the island of Gozo just north of Malta in a stadium a tenth the size of Ta' Qali. Switzerland may well be happy with a repeat of the 1-1 draw these two squads shared a year ago as Under-16s and there is an obvious respect between the two. The Swiss beat Spain to get here and it wouldn't be a surprise to see them gain another positive result against the Germans, who struggled to draw with Serbia in the elite round but excelled in the Algarve Cup and will hope to break down the reactive Swiss.
The Swiss conceded just one goal in qualifying, the same amount as Germany who played half the number of matches after being given a bye to the elite round, suggesting goals may be a rarity as each prizes solidity. Both have creative players, though Germany have more of them and the movement in midfield of captain Patrick Heinrichs and Arianit Ferati should be a highlight as they look to supply striker Phillip Ochs, while the Swiss will try to break through five goal top scorer Albian Ajeti.
The match kicks of at 10.15AM BST and is live on Eurosport
Scotland v Portugal
On paper this is the day's most exciting match as the conquerors of Belgium see how they measure up against the Portuguese. The other Group B sides are showing signs of nervousness about how good Scotland are after their successful qualification and positive friendly results, such as a 2-0 win against the Serbs who troubled Germany in the elite round.
The last time Scotland got to the championships in 2008 they lost all three matches and in the new era of Scottish talent development they are hoping this squad will fare much better, though the match may also be a reminder of how strong the Portuguese are. For all their attacking talent, Portugal will never be an open team and they build off a solid defence happily falling back when attacked only to counter at pace when they win the ball. Both sides are excellent in the air, which may well be where this match is decided. While the Portuguese are favourites to win, all the sides in the tournament will be glancing towards this result for a gauge on the two team's respective challenges.
The match kicks off at 14.15 PM BST and is live on Eurosport 2
With thanks once again to Samuel King, who you can follow on twitter @KingSRV.
