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Could Czech soccer soon discover its very own Wayne Rooney, Cesc Fabregas or Cristiano Ronaldo?

For the 11 days following May 3, the country's strongest prospects, in the form of the Czech national under-17 team, will have a chance to prove whether they're good enough to be associated with those names.

The team will be challenging for the UEFA European Championships Finals in Luxembourg May 3–14. In a tournament where Rooney, Cesc and Ronaldo have all recently shined, there is a real feeling that the stars of the 2006 contest will be Czech.

And it isn't surprising, considering this generation's impressive record.

As the under-16 team a year ago, the squad won the Ballymena International Tournament in Northern Ireland under the guidance of head coach Jakub Dovalil, who, at 32, is in his third year with the team.

Scottish under-16 team head coach Ross Mathie, who lost 3–0 to the Czechs at Ballymena, recalled the squad's ability.

"They were excellent, and I think they could be one of the dark horses in the finals," he said. "As a team they were well-coached, well-disciplined. Their soccer knowledge was strong, and their technical ability was very good."

At the under-17 level, the squad has played 15 matches, losing just two and scoring 31 goals.

It was during the Elite Round — the tougher of the two qualifying rounds in the UEFA championships — that the team really excelled.

By topping the group of death‚ which included two of the favorites — France, which was the champion in 2004, and Turkey, last season's victors — the Czechs became instant contenders for the title.

Strikers Tomáš Necid and Tomáš Pekhart, both 16, were the stars in qualifying, and they are expected to impress again in Luxembourg.

In the Czech Republic, the duo plays for SK Slavia Praha, alongside Lukáš Vácha and Martin Dostál, who are also on the under-17 squad.

Pekhart recently signed with England's Tottenham Hotspur.

The 6-foot-2-inch (1.9-meter) front man is touted as the next Jan Koller and has a strong physical presence, agility and technical abilities, which will no doubt prove a big asset when he moves to London in July.

The team's success can also be attributed its young coach, Dovalil.

Before this year, Dovalil's record as the under-17 coach was unimpressive, with his teams exiting at the Elite Round in the past two seasons. But with another year of experience and a strong group of players, Dovalil is confident his team can perform.

"Just like every team, we want to reach the semifinals," he said.

To do this, the team will have to finish in the top two of Group B. It will have to overcome Serbia and Montenegro, Belgium and a German team that, after winning 10 of its last 11 matches and drawing the other, will be the group favorite.

If the team progresses, it will meet one of Group A's top two, which will most likely be either Spain or Russia.