Hosts or holders set to fall

Either holders Russia or hosts Switzerland are likely to see their UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship campaign end on Sunday when Group B ends with two vital games.

Permutations
Two wins have given France a three-point lead over Russia and Switzerland, with the Netherlands yet to register. France need a point against the hosts in Wil to make absolutely sure of a semi-final berth, but Switzerland will probably need to defeat Les Bleuettes. The Netherlands must overcome Russia, while Valentin Grishin's team hold an advantage over Switzerland on head-to-head record after beating the hosts 2-1.

Russian recovery
It was some recovery after a 4-1 loss to France had left Russia staring elimination in the face. But then a year ago they began with a 4-0 defeat by France and ended up champions. "It is a usual thing for us. In the first match of final tournaments we play terribly and then in the second match much better and the third better still, so we hope for a good performance," said Grishin.

Danilova gains confidence
Elena Danilova, the leading scorer in 2005, struck twice against Switzerland to take the joint lead in the strikers' table this time and in contrast to her downbeat mood before the game now takes a positive approach. "This win has given us a lot of confidence and I think we will play well against the Netherlands," she said. "We have to defend our title and prove ourselves to everybody."

Netherlands pride
Although the odds are against the Netherlands, there is still pride to play for. Coach Ed Engelkes said: "We want to at least win one game. That's the goal for the next game, so that we can be proud of the team and then maybe go home or maybe we stay - we shall see. We have watched tapes of them so we know them. I know about Danilova but if my defenders play as well as they did [against France] we have a chance."

Swiss hope
It is of course a tough task for Switzerland against the French, probably the outstanding team so far, but home coach Claudio Taddei has not given up hope. "France beat the Dutch 1-0, we won 2-0 - so we have the possibility of beating them - why not?" However, he is calling for a bigger turnout of fans than there was against Russia in Schaffhausen. "We want more than 500 people there on Sunday," he said.

Point still needed
France coach Stéphane Pilard is in a strong position - only a five-goal defeat could knock his team out - but he is taking nothing for granted. "The match against Switzerland will be a big one, because they have to win, and we need a draw," he said. "The Swiss will be very motivated to reach the semi-finals, and they will have a lot of supporters at the game."

Keeping calm
Engelkes tipped France as likely champions after the Dutch lost 1-0 to them on Thursday, but Pilard is not thinking that far ahead. He said: "Favourites? I haven't seen the other group - but we take each match one by one, after that we'll see - we still have to qualify."

Captain confident
Captain Caroline Pizzala added: "Switzerland will have their public behind them, but it's now in our hands to get first place. We have a good team, it's a new squad compared to last year, we're confident of what we can do. I don't know about being favourites, but we can go far if we continue to play like we are doing."