Hosts geared up for Group B hopefuls

Dobrislav Dimovski expects the winners of this year's UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship to hail from Group B, but the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia coach was careful not to build up his own side's chances too much as the hosts approached the competition start line with section rivals Spain, France and the Netherlands.

The 2004 champions Spain will be first on the agenda for FYROM when the action kicks off on Monday, and Dimovski is fully aware of the task awaiting his tournament newcomers. "We've only been playing women's competitions for six years and I've been here from the start, so I have previous experience of facing all three of our opponents," he said.

"They were better than us in the past but I think we're more competitive now and we can maybe pull off an upset. The first few minutes against Spain will be important. I think we'll start very well, and after that I expect a good performance and a good result."

The home side could also profit from Spain's troubled route to the finals – not so much their tournament record, Ángel Vilda's side having recovered from a loss to Iceland in their second qualifying round opener, but their late arrival in Skopje.

Spain stayed in Budapest on Saturday night after their travel plans were disrupted late on, but they finally touched down boasting eight players from the squad that finished runners-up in the 2009 UEFA European Women's Under-17 Championship. "That's important because these girls have international experience and know what it is like to compete in the final phase of a tournament," Vilda told UEFA.com. "We don't play friendlies, so that experience is important."

The Netherlands narrowly failed to qualify for those U17 finals, a single goal separating them and group winners France, and that disappointment will feed their desire when many of the same players they take on Les Bleuettes at the Boris Trajkovski Stadium. "The two teams are very equal so I think it will be a good match," said Netherlands tactician Hesterine de Reus. "We could win it, but so could they. We weren't able to bring all our best players here because some had to stay behind for schoolwork, but we have a good squad and we're capable of getting through to the semi-finals."

The last four was as far as France managed to progress in the 2009 edition and Jean-Michel Degrange's current crop of talent cannot wait to begin their bid, aiming to repeat the success of their triumphant predecessors in 2003. "The girls are anxious to play and the squad is in good spirits," explained assistant coach Lydie Charrier. "It's a difficult match to start the competition but everyone's looking forward to it. The Netherlands are a good team with athletic players so it won't be easy and we'll need to be motivated and focused."