Pizzala takes pride of place

A year ago in Hungary, Caroline Pizzala was one of France's junior players and watched from the bench as Les Bleuettes played out an epic UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship final against Russia, losing in heartbreaking fashion on penalties. "It was frustrating," Pizzala admits of her spectating brief.

Captain's role
Things are a bit different now. The midfielder's place is pretty secure as she captains the team, and France are again in the final on Saturday having won all their fixtures in this competition. "I am very happy because now I am captain, it gives me more responsibility for the team," she told uefa.com. "Everything is going well. The spirit in the team is very good."

New-look team
Seven of last year's squad are back again this season, but that means eleven changes, so the side had to bond quickly when qualification began for France in April. Pizzala said: "At the start there were lots of new players. At the beginning of the competition the team had to gel." That process is helped as so many of the players have attended the national school at Clairefontaine and represented the attached club side. "It is easier to play with the same players as at club level, because you have an automatic understanding," Pizzala said. "But it is not the most important thing, that is the entire squad being together."

German test
Germany, rather than Russia, form France's final opposition this time around in Berne. Pizzala said: "We haven't played Germany for two years at U19 level. We played them in Germany when we were U17s several times, we know some of the players. And we saw [their 4-0 semi-final win] against Russia on Eurosport. The final is always a difficult match - the most difficult of the competition. I hope it will be a very good game and, of course, that we win."

Senior goal
While winning is important, it is not the only consideration at youth level. The fact the U19s have reached four of the last five European finals can only boost an already-strong senior France team. "All the success at U19 level will help the national team to be more successful in the future," Pizzala concluded.