U17 contenders book semi-final slots
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
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On Friday Switzerland will take on the Netherlands in Grimma followed by hosts Germany against Italy in Dessau-Rosslau in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship semi-finals after the group stage was concluded.
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Hosts Germany will face Italy and Switzerland take on the Netherlands in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship semi-finals on Friday after the group stage concluded today.
Quartet through
Switzerland secured first place in Group A in the morning fixtures with a 0-0 draw against Spain, a result which ended the hopes of the defending champions as Italy beat France 2-1 to pip the holders to second position. Germany were already through before they played the Netherlands in Jena and a 2-0 win meant they finished top of Group B. However, as England were beaten 1-0 by Turkey, the Netherlands, runners-up in 2005, retained second place.
Schedule
The first semi-final between 2002 champions Switzerland and the Netherlands will kick off at 11.00CET at the Stadion der Freundschaft in Grimma. At 17.45CET the Paul-Greifzu-Stadion in Dessau-Rosslau will play host to Germany against Italy, each aiming to reach a maiden U17 final. Both games will be shown live on Eurosport as will the final on Monday at 11.00CET at the Stadion Magdeburg, for which a competition record attendance of around 23,000 is expected.