Holders Germany into semis at Euro U21 championships

Milan (AFP) – Germany joined Spain in the semi-finals of the European Under-21 championships on Sunday with a 1-1 draw against Austria ensuring the defending champions finished top of Group B.

Luca Waldschmidt put the Germans ahead after 14 minutes in Udine with his fifth goal of the tournament before Kevin Danso replied from the penalty spot ten minutes later for the Austrians.

Germany top the group with seven points, ahead of Denmark, who were eliminated despite a 2-0 win over Serbia.

Denmark have six points, but are behind hosts Italy, who are second in Group A, on goal difference, so cannot advance as the best second-placed team.

Austria and Serbia are eliminated after finishing third and fourth respectively in their group.

Spain, runners-up to Germany two years ago, reached the semi-finals on Saturday with a 5-0 win over Poland ensuring they finished top of Group A.

Italy will have to wait for the result of Monday’s Group C match between France and Romania to see if they advance the semi-finals.

Both Spain and Germany booked their tickets to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo by reaching the final four in Europe.