Peacock pleased with draw

John Peacock was a relieved man after narrowly missing out on the group of death when the draw for the Under-17 European Championships was made on Tuesday.

With six of the eight balls drawn - England and Ukraine were the last two teams remaining - the young Lions had a 50 per cent chance of ending up in Group A with France, Spain and Germany.

But fortune smiled on England who were spared the tougher of the two groups by being placed with Holland, Belgium and Iceland.

"No disrespect to our opponents, but Group A is tough," said Peacock. "It was down to the last two balls, so we are pleased with where we ended up. If you had offered me that draw earlier then I would have been happy."

Despite missing out on playing three of the biggest names in youth football, Peacock insists his team will be taking nothing for granted when battle commences in May.

"We have a few hurdles to overcome," he added. "Holland will be strong. Technically they will be good too.

"Belgium, as the host nation, will want to do well. I don't know much about Iceland although they qualified really well from their group."

As well as the prestige of winning the European Championships, England, who reached the finals by beating Serbia, Azerbaijan and Bosnia a week before the draw, will have an extra incentive when they kick off in Belgium.

The top two sides from each group will qualify for the World Cup in Korea while the sides finishing in third position will have a play-off to decide who will take the fifth berth at the showpiece event.

Here's the draw in full: