England ready for Yugoslavia test

England and Yugoslavia go head-to-head in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship quarter-finals on Saturday in what promises to be a physical encounter.

Avoided Spain
England avoided a battle with pre-tournament joint-favourites Spain in the last eight courtesy of their 0-0 draw against hosts Denmark on Wednesday, but they must overcome a strong Yugoslavian side if they are to negotiate a path to the semi-finals and beyond.

Scratch side
An opening-day 3-2 victory over Finland got England off to a flying start and their 2-0 win against the Netherlands in Gladsaxe confirmed their progress from Group A. Coach Dick Bate then made seven changes to his starting lineup for the Denmark match, but his scratch side did well enough to earn a point and secure top spot in the group.

Rooney to start?
With Chris Hogg and captain David Raven looking strong at the heart of England's defence, Bate has been able concentrate more on his attacking options. Everton FC's Wayne Rooney, scorer of a magnificent individual goal against the Dutch, is likely to start up front but Dorryl Proffitt did his chances of a place in the first eleven no harm with a strong display against Denmark.

'Where we wanted to be'
Bate was delighted to finish top of a tight section but is not expecting an easy ride against a Yugoslavia side he rates very highly. "Yugoslavia will provide difficult opposition," he said. "They are a very technical football nation and are always tricky customers to deal with. It was very important for us to win our group and we achieved what we set out to do. We are exactly where we wanted to be."

Vukcevic threat
Yugoslavia's progress was something of a surprise, with many tipping Spain and the Czech Republic to be the qualifiers from Group C. However, that notion was quickly eradicated, when Yugoslavia beat the Czechs 3-1 in their second group match in Nakskov. Striker Simon Vukcevic grabbed one of his country's goals, to add to the hat-trick he scored against Moldova, and he is likely to be the player that England must watch out for.

Knezevic suspended
Yugoslavia will definitely be without Srdja Knezevic for Wednesday's encounter as the FK Partizan defender is serving a one-match ban following a red card in their final group match against Spain. Momcilo Vujacic's side lost that game 5-1 but fielded a much-weakened side with their place in the last eight already secured.

'Ambition is to win'
Vujacic has instilled a huge amount of confidence in his team but will not be taking England lightly. "Our ambition is to win the tournament," he said. "I watched England and Holland in Group A and was particularly impressed by England. I didn't mind if we got England, Denmark or Holland in the quarter-finals, as we will not underestimate our opponents and all the teams left in the competition are good teams."