U17-EURO

ÖFB in party mood, France out despite Messi!

All or nothing, win or fly - Austria's U17 national soccer team will face Serbia in the quarter-finals of the European Championship in Cyprus on Wednesday evening. Top favorites France, meanwhile, have to pack their bags.

In Group D with Portugal, England, France and Spain, three teams finished level on points with six points and France had to go home despite two wins in three games.

And they did so despite having the player with the most prominent name in world soccer in their squad - Messi. But unlike his prominent Argentinian namesake, Rayane Messi was unable to lead "Les Bleus" to the title - or even to progress to the quarter-finals. Nevertheless, the 17-year-old, who still plays for third division side Dijon in Burgundy, is seen as a promise for the future. Matthieu Merle, his youth coach at Versailles, remembers: "He has everything. He's quick, strong, a sensational dribbler and strong in one-on-one situations." That sounds like a true Messi ...