Talented teams meet in Bulgaria

By Stoyan Georgiev

There will be a familiar name for Bulgarian fans to cheers on when their nation welcomes Belarus, Russia and Finland for UEFA European Under-17 Championship Elite round Group 4, starting on Sunday.

Family ties
In goal will be Nikolai Mihailov, son of the legendary Borislav Mihailov, custodian for the Bulgarian team that reached the 1994 FIFA World Cup semi-finals, and grandson of another international, Bisser Mihailov.

Raring to go
Bulgaria came top of a tight qualifying round Group 1, starting with a 2-1 win against Romania 2-1 and overcoming a similar loss to Poland with a 5-0 closing triumph against Estonia that clinched first place. Their campaign resumes against Finland in Blagoevgrad, and coach Kiril Kachamanov is raring to go.

'Talented players'
"We are really looking forward to the games," said the coach, whose side are chasing the one place on offer in May's eight-team finals in Italy. "We have some very talented players and I hope they will reveal their potential."

Belarussian preparations
However, their opponents have been preparing hard. Belarus have been in Bulgaria since 14 March, staying in Nesebyr on the Black Sea coast. Having defeated San Marino and Malta to qualify behind Portugal, Belarus staged a friendly tournament in February, defeating Poland, Lithuania and Latvia before being pipped by Serbia and Montenegro on penalties after a 1-1 draw.

Kisly goals
Of the eight goals scored there, six came from captain Siarhei Kisly. However, coach Piotr Mikheyeu believes there is plenty of other talent in the squad, saying: "The task of a striker is to score. Sergei is doing that well, but he is not the only key performer.

'Good job'
"The defenders are also good, I would point out Oleg Veretilo, and in midfield Ihar Lisitsa, but all the players are doing a good job. We are aiming to get to the final tournament. We have done a lot of work and it should not be in vain."

Russia go close
Like Belarus, their first opponents in Dupnitza, Russia, have been preparing hard to avoid a second consecutive Elite round exit. While Belarus only secured one point at this stage last year, Russia came agonisingly close, remaining unbeaten and gaining seven points but being pipped by eventual runners-up Spain on goal difference.

Busy schedule
In 2004 Russia played 31 U17 matches, winning 17 and lifting the Latvian Football Federation President's Cup, Ogannes Goaryan top-scoring with 17 goals. Russia came through their qualifying round group comfortably, defeating Kazakhstan and Cyprus and drawing with Ukraine. In recent friendlies, a two-match series in Israel finished with one win apiece, and Russia recently gained 2-0 and 2-1 victories against Azerbaijan.

Finnish record
Finland also came close to qualifying in 2003/04, losing out to Austria by a single point although they were eliminated with one game remaining. They have a fine record at this level, and indeed are the only nation in Group 4 to have reached an U17 finals, the inaugural 16-team competition for this age group in 2001/02.

Mixed results
Bouncing back from losing their opening qualifying round game against Greece this time around, Finland ended first in Group 8 on home soil after defeating F.Y.R. Macedonia and Georgia. However, two defeats in recent friendlies against Israel gave Timo Liekoski's side food for thought, though those games last month were preceded by a 1-1 draw with that nation's U18 team. Liekoski said: "The teams in our group are all tough, but we are looking for the best possible result."

Additional reporting by Denis Orlov, Eduard Nisenboim & Mikael Erävuori