Spain target Austrian defence

Spain hotly tipped
Even before the start of the tournament Spain were being tipped in many quarters as likely champions, and little that has happened since will have dissuaded their supporters from that theory, with even Austria coach Ernst Weber admitting the Spaniards are "favourites" to progress to Saturday's final against either Portugal or England.

Final tally
Spain won their opening two Group B games at a canter, brushing past the accomplished Italians and the spirited Israelis 2-0 and 3-0 with some characteristically silky attacking football. In their final group game against England they led 2-0 at half-time only to be pulled back by their determined opponents and forced to settle for a 2-2 draw and final tally of seven points.

Austrians gain heart
The English certainly unsettled the Spanish in the second half – which will give the Austrians much heart. "England became really good and surprised us with the way they played," Spain coach Juan Santisteban admitted. "It was a fair result." Santisteban will not be underestimating the Austrians, especially with the memory of the two sides' 0-0 draw in the final of the 1997 U16 European Championship still in his mind. "It was a very difficult game, very close," he said.

Attacking style
The Spanish coach has promised that his side will continue to play with the same creative approach that characterised their group matches. "We Spanish are always attacking and always think along attacking lines," he said. However having conceded just one goal in their opening three games Austria's defence may offer Spain their toughest challenge so far.

Victory against Danes
Weber's charges progressed from Group A in second place behind Portugal with six points from two games. A narrow 1-0 win against neighbours Hungary in their opening game, courtesy of a goal two minutes from time by Christoph Sauerer, being followed by a single-goal reverse against the Portuguese and a 2-0 victory against Demark in their final, must-win game.

Two defenders missing
Crucially two components of the formidable Austrian defence will be missing for Wednesday's game as Andreas Dober and Andreas Schicker are both suspended after picking up their second bookings of the tournament. Weber's other selection dilemmas are happier ones for the coach as he seeks to chose between several deserving candidates to fill crucial roles in midfield and attack.

Mayer suspended
Forward Patrick Mayer, scorer of his side's crucial first goal against the Danes after coming on as a substitute, is also suspended but Daniel Horvath, another goalscoring substitute in that game, is pushing for a place in the starting eleven.

Creative gifts
Nevertheless, how Austria's reshuffled defence copes in Dober and Schicker's absence is likely to have the most important bearing on the eventual outcome of the match. All of Spain's attacking players have demonstrated their ample creative gifts at the tournament so far with Cases and Xisco both scoring twice already and Jurado, David and Silva also registering one goal apiece.

Contrasting sides
With two such contrasting sides facing each other, and the reward of a place in Saturday's final, as well as a berth in the FIFA World Under-17 championship ,on offer to the victors it seems sure to be a memorable match.