Sunu plays last 18 minutes as France and Spain draw thriller

The 2008 UEFA u-17 European Championships are currently taking place in Turkey. Scroll down for reports on the Arsenal players at the tournament, Gilles Sunu of France and Oghuzan Ozyakup of the Netherlands.

Gilles Sunu- France 3 Spain 3

Gilles played the final 18 minutes of this pulsating game as France took on the holders Spain in Group A.

After failing to score in the opening game against Ireland, Gilles was left on the bench for the eagerly anticipated face-off between France and Spain. France dominated the early stages of the game and after Keko missed an early chance for Spain, Yanis Tafer was on hand to give France the lead on 11 minutes after a run through the defence. Spain enjoyed the better of the possession after the goal, as they piled forward in search of an equaliser. Thiago hit a free-kick narrowly over the bar and Ruben had a further opportunity before Spain actually did score. A free-kick was taken and Ruben Rochina was credited with the goal, although it could be argued that it was actually Thiago’s strike. The whistle-happy referee gave several other free-kicks before the interval, which neither side made the most of and booked Remy for bringing down Ruben. The two sides went into the break deadlocked at 1-1.

Half time- France 1 Spain 1

If you thought the first half was good, then the second was simply amazing. A sensational period at the start of the half saw three goals and some cracking football. It was the French who took the lead. Spain’s Oriol brought down Lacazette and the highly-regarded Clement Grenier smashed the resulting free-kick in to the back of the net to make it 2-1. No sooner had the French finished celebrating, their goalkeeper Mfa Mezui was picking the ball out of the back of the net. A quick break-away led to a corner, which set-piece king Thiago delivered and Pudil managed to bundle it home for 2-2. Game on! Then, amazingly, in a similar style, France won a corner which Lacazette took and Remy did well to score with a great piece of skill. 3-2 to France and completing an outstanding start to the second half which was a great advert for the UEFA u-17 European Championships. Spain looked to change things and introduced Manu for Kamana, before replacing the misfiring Keka with Canales. But it was Thiago who made the difference with a free-kick on 67 minutes. Instead of whipping it over the wall as expected, he used his intelligence to lash a powerful effort across the ground and into the back of the net, leaving the French stunned. It was a goal worthy of winning the game, let alone bringing it level.

Sunu emerged from the bench with 18 minutes to play and took up a position on the right hand side of midfield. He had an opportunity soon after his arrival but seemed a little hesitant in the area and in the end was overcrowded by Spanish defenders. He set up a couple of attacks with some decent long balls and as has been mentioned before, he is a willing runner and often tracked back to help in defence.

After a tense last few minutes, the referee blew the final whistle to end this pulsating game. Thiago was outstanding for Spain, whilst Clement Grenier was in good form again for France. It’s clear that both of these countries have bright futures.

Full time- France 3 Spain 3

In the other game in Group A, Switzerland beat Ireland 1-0 thanks to a Gunning own goal. It makes the final round of games in the group an enticing prospect, with Spain and France leading the way with four points, and Switzerland lurking just behind on three. France face the Swiss on Saturday, whilst Spain face Ireland and you would expect the two big guns to make it through.

Oghuzan Ozyakup- Netherlands 1 Serbia 0

In Group B, Oguhzan Ozyakup was an unused substitute as the Netherlands beat Serbia 1-0. Despite enjoying large spells of possession, the Serbians were unable to exploit the Dutch backline and lost due to a Castillon strike on 33 minutes.

Hosts Turkey beat Scotland 1-0 in the other game in this group, and the Turks sit top of the Group with six points and one game left to play. The Netherlands lie second in the table, tied on three points with third placed Serbia. In the final round of games on Saturday, Serbia take on Turkey, whilst the Netherlands are up against Scotland who sit bottom of the group with no points from two games.