The Bulgarian under-19 national team qualified for the Elite round after a draw 3:3 against Cyprus in the last match in Group 3 of the UERO 2016 Qualifying round. The game was played at "Kouklia" stadium in Paphos.

In the other match, Luxembourg and Poland also made a draw 2:2 but it was enough for the Poles to finish in top in Group 3 with 7 points.

Bulgaria and Luxembourg have 4 points but the Bulgarians will finish in second place because of the win against the Luxembourgers with 2:1 at "Paphiakos" stadium on Friday 13th.

Luxembourg still has a chance to qualify as one of the third-placed teams with the best record against the top pair but will have to wait for the final results in all the groups.

The team of Cyprus ends in fourth place with 1 point.

The game was a treat for those who attended the spectacle at "Kouklia" stadium that saw two sides who went in search of a win that would force themselves into hunt for promotion in the Elite round, what was witnessed was a game that did not disappoint as the sides shared 6 goals equally between them in the cracking 3:3 draw.

The captain Aleksander Georgiev was the star of the show, scoring two goals in five minutes in the second half and providing a delightful cross for Bozhidar Kraev, who scored Bulgaria’s first goal in 41st minute.

During the first quarter of the first half there were no scoring opportunities in front of the two goals.

In the 25th minute Aleksander Georgiev found himself in a good position, but his shot was blocked.

Four munutes later the hosts broke the deadlock. Demetris Charalambous crossed to Georgios Christodoulou who netted the ball.

In the 34th minute Bulgaria`s captain Georgiev again tried to threaten the goal, guarded by Panagiotou, but missed the target.

The lead did not last long. Four minutes before the end of the first half Svetoslav Todorov`s players equalized. Alexander Georgiev found Bozhidar Kraev who made it 1:1.

Two minutes after the break Cyprus retook the lead as Demetris Charalambous crossed to Georgios Malekkidis who made it 2:1.

The Bulgarians responded quickly and leveled the score in the 58th minute when Angel Maksimov passed to Aleksander Georgiev, who overcame Panagiotou for 2:2.

It didn't take long for Bulgaria`s captain to put his name again on the scoreboard. Five minutes later he netted the ball for 3:2 after an assist from Tonislav Yordanov.

In the 73rd minute Tonislav Yordanov had a chance to seal the win, but Panagiotou saved his shot.

Few minutes before the end Christos Kallis shaped the final outcome after a third assist from Demetris Charalambous.

Yellow cards: Christos Kallis, Rafael Anastasiou, Christos Wheeler, Georgios Christodoulou (Cyprus).

BULGARIA: 1. Mihail Mihailov, 2. Stoycho Atanasov, 3. Georgi Kupenov, 5. Ventsislav Kerchev, 13. Galin Minkov, 6. Antonio Georgiev, 10. Tomas Tsvyatkov (90 + 4 min. - Denislav Aleksandrov), 11. Bozhidar Kraev, 20. Angel Maksimov (90 + 2 min. - Angel Lyaskov), 8. Aleksander Georgiev - C., 9. Tonislav Yordanov (79 min. - Stefan Ivanov)

Head coach: Svetoslav Todorov

Cyprus: 12. Takis Panagiotou, 3. Christos Wheeler, 5. Georgios Christodoulou, 6. Rafael Anastasiou, 7. Pavlos Christodoulou (62 min. - Thodoros Iosifidis), 8. Andreas Fragkou – C. (73 min. - Gavriel Yerolemou), 10. Demetris Charalambous, 14. Christos Kallis, 16. Soteris Fiakas, 17. Georgios Malekkidis, 18. Michalis Charalampous (56 min. - Stavrinos Konstantinou).

Head coach: Renos Demetriades

Referee: Sergei Lapochkin (RUS)

Assistant referees: Aleksei Lebedev (RUS), Sean Carr (SCO)

Fourth official: Andrew Dallas (SCO)

"Kouklia" stadium, city Paphos

Department "Public Relations and Media"