The eight teams on show at the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship are playing for two prizes – tournament glory and qualification for the 2012 Olympics in London. For some, earning the chance of a dream transfer to one of the world’s top clubs will also be a consideration. Needless to say however, in Denmark the stakes are high.
Two years ago in Sweden, it was the Germans who took top honours, behind a well-organised defence and the play-making of future senior team star Mesut Ozil. But a different cast awaits this year. Germany are nowhere to be seen, nor are the Swedes and Italians who both reached the last four in 2009.
Instead, new faces will grace the stage, knowing that a spot in the last four should clinch a trip to the Olympics next year, depending on England’s progress. However, the group stage draw appears to have thrown together a somewhat uneven split, with the strength of Group B considerably outweighing that of Group A.
Group A features host nation Denmark, Switzerland, Belarus and Iceland – and in truth the group is fairly wide open. The Danes will enjoy home support, but did not have to endure a qualifying campaign and have been dealt a double blow by the absences of Arsenal’s Nicklas Bendtner and Wolfsburg’s Simon Kjaer. Nevertheless, Denmark are favourites to win Group A, but they still have a lot to prove.
Switzerland, managed by Pierluigi Tami, boast the attacking threat of Mario Gavranović and the midfield creativity of Fabian Frei, who scored two goals in his past three games. After a solid qualifying campaign and a demolition of Sweden in their playoff tie, the Swiss have reason to be confident. A string of players with senior level experience is a plus too.
Meanwhile, Belarus and Iceland are not receiving a lot of attention but should not be written off. The Belarusians have a classy midfield, featuring the talented Dzmitry Rekish of Polonia Warszawa, and plenty of experience at senior level. Coach Georgi Kondratyev remains full of optimism. “I have chosen the players I trust, the players who were with me in difficult situations and who would never let me down,” he said.
Iceland are also a tough team to assess. On the one hand, this is their first appearance at a European Championship but, on the other, there is an abundance of senior side experience in the squad. It would come as no surprise to see Icelanders topple one of the Group A favourites, even if a run to the last four seems unlikely.
Over in Group B, the competition is going to be red hot from the first whistle. England, runners-up in 2009, have been drawn alongside Spain, Ukraine and the Czech Republic. Stuart Pearce’s side have been widely tipped for another strong run, but will be without key men Jack Wilshere, Theo Walcott and Andy Carroll. Nonetheless, England can call upon Jordan Henderson, who shone for Sunderland this season, and Everton’s Jack Rodwell as well as attacking threats Scott Sinclair and Daniel Sturridge who both finished the campaign in fine form.
And Pearce believes his side’s know-how could be a decisive factor. “We’ve got experience of tournament football, me, my staff and the players. We’ve got a lot of players, something in the region of six or seven, that have been there before.”
While the Spaniards appear to be the other powerhouse in Group B, closer inspection suggests that there will be no easy games. Ukraine reached the tournament at the expense of an excellent Dutch team while the Czechs dominated their playoff tie.
However, given Spain’s domination of the game over the past five years, it is hard to look past Luis Milla’s team, who can draw inspiration from the success of their senior side and, of course, the unstoppable stars of Barcelona. Boasting Barcelona’s Bojan Krkic and Valencia’s Juan Mata, there is no shortage of attacking flair while goalkeeper David de Gea, expected to complete a move to Manchester United, provides an imposing final barrier. Athletic Bilbao star Javi Martinez is another man to follow closely.
The Ukrainians will be perfectly happy in the role of underdog in Group B and have the firepower to crash the England-Spain party. Consistency has been the biggest issue though – both in their qualifying group and in their playoff success over Holland – and it is hard to see Ukraine sustaining top form throughout the group stage.
However, the Czechs are a different story, with plenty of aces up their sleeve. A solid qualifying campaign, winning seven of eight in their group, was built on a fine defence while 6ft 4in striker Tomas Pekhart – formerly of Tottenham Hotspur– is a dangerous target man.
Tournament games will be split between stadiums in Aarhus, Aalborg, Herning and Viborg, with the final to be played in Aarhus. Picking a winner is no easy feat, but the smart money is on Group B providing the champions. One guarantee is that crowds in Denmark are in for a special fortnight of football.
