WU19 EURO matchday two: what to watch out for

Group B: England v Spain (18.30CET)
Previous WU19 EURO meetings: England won 2, Spain won 2, Drawn 2
Spain demolished Norway 4-0 on Monday and another win against England could take them through with a game to spare. Mo Marley, whose side were undone by Germany's 87th-minute winner, is in determined mood though. "We have a history of losing the first game but qualifying," she says. "We've shown what we can do and all the teams will have a big part to play in how this group goes."

There are several survivors in Israel of last year's group stage meeting, a 2-0 win that sealed Spain's progress and England's departure – history could be repeated in Ramla. Nahikari García, on the scoresheet 12 months ago, will hope so though Jorge Vilda adds a note of caution, saying: "England are a great team, they proved that during qualifying and will make it tough for us."

Group B: Germany v Norway
Previous WU19 EURO meetings: Germany won 5, Norway won 0, Drawn 1
The competition history books are decidedly one-sided between these two, never more so than in the 2011 final when Germany feasted on a flagging Norway side in a record 8-1 win. It was 5-0 last time, in the 2013 group stage, and Norway go into this on the back of that Spain defeat. Yet all is not lost. When these sides met at La Manga in March there was one goal in it … scored by Norway's Vilde Fjelldal.

"They are strong, good in the air, with good technique and they score a lot of goals," says Germany boss Maren Meinert. "We have to bring the same level of performance that we did against England." Monday's scoreline did not reflect well on Norway but the statistics were pretty even and Nils Lexerød is not panicking. "We have to be optimistic. We have good recent experience against Germany."

Group A: Sweden v Denmark
Previous WU19 EURO meetings: Sweden won 3, Denmark won 0, Drawn 2
Denmark lost 1-0 to France on Monday and Søren Randa-Boldt admits that the scoreline could have been greater; there is work to do for his side. A more familiar style of opponents could suit them in Rishon Le-zion, and the coach is looking forward to having more of the ball – in this climate possession is key.

Elena Danilova©Sportsfile

Sweden have cause for optimism, too. They have never lost to their Nordic rivals in this competition, including a 3-1 win in the 2012 semi-finals en route to their title. "We expect to win," says Calle Barrling. Striker Stina Blackstenius, who struck twice against Israel, needs one goal to equal Elena Danilova's 2005/06 campaign record.

Group A: Israel v France
Previous WU19 EURO meetings: have never met
The tournament hosts will have their work cut out in Netanya. Les Bleuettes are an ominous proposition, picking up where they left off in qualifying against Denmark on Monday. They keep things watertight at the back and though they are guilty of not always taking their chances, there is a sense that when it clicks they will take some stopping. The loss of Delphine Cascarino to a torn calf could hurt, though.

Israel performed well against Sweden on their tournament debut, a 3-0 defeat showing how far they have come since going down 8-0 against the same side. Guy Azouri says his players can build on that, but France present a huge challenge.

Matchday two is on Saturday. Tickets cost 10ILS (€2.50) and are available either at the stadiums or via this link. The site is in Hebrew.

*Previous WU19 EURO meetings include qualifying.