Hosts aim to be winners

By Aleksandar Boskovic

Having never reached the finals of the UEFA European Under-19 Championship, Serbia and Montenegro will be confident of ending that unwanted record this year as they prepare to welcome Albania, Poland and the Republic of Ireland for Elite round Group 7.

Unbeaten qualification
Zvonko Zivkovic's team remained unbeaten in clinching first place in Group 3 in the qualifying round, defeating Latvia 2-0 and mini-tournament hosts Slovenia 4-2 before a 1-1 draw against Germany left Serbia and Montenegro above the Germans on goal difference. Three players got the goals, Marko Markovski scoring three times and Borko Veselinovic and Nebojša Marinkovic twice each.

Sharpness concern
Despite that success, former FK Partizan midfield player Zivkovic is in circumspect mood, saying: "We have one really big problem - the domestic U19 competition finished some time ago, and my players have not had many games since. But we must do everything in our preparation to improve their form, I believe in them. They are winners."

Perendija profile
In the absence of FK Partizan midfield player Simon Vukcevic, already a full international and who Zivkovic believes may feature should the Serbo-Montenegrins reach this summer's finals in Northern Ireland, FK Teleoptik defender Milan Perendija is the most high-profile player in a squad lacking top-flight experience.

Positive thinking
Zivkovic expects all three Group 7 opponents to pose problems, saying: "Albania are an unknown quantity while Ireland and Poland both have European pedigree and it will be a big battle against them for first place. The first match is the most important - if we beat Albania, everything else becomes much easier. Our target is the finals, which we know is a hard job. But if you want to win, you must think like a winner."

Tight squeeze
Ireland squeezed through as one of the qualifying-round runners-up, edging out Cyprus in a three-way tie after finishing level on six points with section winners Russia and the Cypriots at the top of Group 9. Coach Sean McCaffrey is deprived of Celtic FC midfield player Aiden McGeady due to club commitments, although Patrick Cregg, Leon Best and Joey O'Brien have all made first-team appearances for English sides.

'Good opportunity'
However, only Scunthorpe United FC striker Andrew Keogh is a club regular while fellow forward Billy Clarke is ruled out by injury. Nonetheless, McCaffrey remains optimistic, saying: "It's a tough group but I feel we have a chance. This is a good opportunity for us."

Top-flight experience
Poland qualified in second place in Group 2, holding off Moldova to finish as runners-up behind Ukraine. The Poles reached the 2003/04 final tournament in Switzerland - and defeated the Swiss 3-1 in the qualifying round this season - and will be heavily reliant on the experience of Wisla Plock midfield player Adrian Mierzejewski and Legia Warszawa pair Jakub Rzelniczak and Dariusz Frankiewicz, all of whom feature regularly in the Polish Ekstraklasa.

Albanian upset
Albania could yet prove to be the surprise package, having overcome the odds, and a 7-1 defeat by Finland, to win qualifying round Group 7. Coach Edmond Liçaj is confident his side can make an impact, saying: "We want to give a good account of Albanian youth football. But I think we have a few good players and are strong enough to go through this tough group." Many of Liçaj's players appear in Albania's top flight - FK Partizani's Arber Abilaliaj, Olgert Stafa of KS Dinamo Tirana and KS Lushnja's Vangjel Mile are names to note, with the latter already an U21 international and the son of former senior international Kristaq.

Additional reporting by Aidan Fitzmaurice, Maciej Iwanski and Dritan Ikonomi.