Italy, Poland, Sweden, North Macedonia and Armenia - the draw was not in favor of the young Montenegrin football team, so it faces a difficult road towards Euro 2027 in Albania and Serbia.
"We ended up in a group with very high-quality opponents, teams that have a history of appearing in final tournaments for U-21 national teams and that have managed to win the title of the best in Europe for this age group in the past," said coach Goran Perišić.
The qualifications start in March, when Perišić - after brilliantly leading the younger categories - will make his debut on the bench of the U-21 national team.
"Before the draw, and after we found out who our opponents were, our primary goal was to be better in terms of points and position in the table compared to previous cycles, while we will look for a chance to achieve a result that would be characterized as a great success," Perišić explained.
Of course, the most resounding name in the group is Italy.
"They are certainly the best-quality team in the group, a team made up of very high-quality players who continuously play for Serie A clubs," the Montenegrin coach is clear.
It won't be easy against other opponents either.
"We know very well that the Poles, with whom we have played in previous years in the U-19 national team competition, are a quality team with excellent players. There is also Sweden, which has a good U-21 team year after year and which will certainly be a very demanding and difficult opponent. We also have duels with the teams of North Macedonia and Armenia, which will, at least theoretically, be the easiest for our team in this cycle," added Perišić.
The former defender and captain of Buducnost is sure of one thing.
"We have ten strong and interesting duels ahead of us in these qualifiers and we will approach each of them with maximum responsibility and dedication," concluded Perišić.
Direct qualification to Euro 2027 will be won by the nine group winners and the best second-placed team in the qualifiers, while the remaining teams that take second place will go to the play-offs.
Make up groups
Group A: Spain, Romania, Finland, Kosovo, Cyprus, San Marino
Group B: Portugal, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Scotland, Azerbaijan, Gibraltar
Group C: France, Switzerland, Iceland, F. Islands, Luxembourg, Estonia
Group D: England, Ireland, Slovakia, Moldova, Kazakhstan, Andorra
Group E: Italy, Poland, Sweden, S. Macedonia, Montenegro, Armenia
Group F: Germany, Georgia, Greece, S. Ireland, Latvia, Malta
Group G: Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Israel, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group H: Ukraine, Croatia, Hungary, Turkey, Lithuania
Group I: Denmark, Belgium, Austria, Wales, Belarus.
Bonus video:
