The secret favorites Austria storm into the European Championship round of 16 as group winners. The signature of tactician Ralf Rangnick on the coaching bench is palpable. The players emphasize character.
25.06.2024, 21:28
25.06.2024, 21:45
SDA
Perhaps May 2 was the decisive day for Austria's high-flying performance at this European Championship. That's when Ralf Rangnick decided to resist the shawm sounds of Bayern Munich. The 65-year-old Swabian is unlikely to regret his decision to remain Austria's national team coach.
His players delivered their masterpiece with a spirited 3:2 victory over the Netherlands in Berlin. In the so-called group of death with France, the Oranjes and Poland, Austria did not just hang on for dear life to reach the last 16, but emerged as the group winners. The secret of their success: "This team has one hundred percent character," enthuses Romano Schmid. The midfielder, who is only 1.68 m tall, scored the 2:1 and his first international goal with a pike header.
Substitutes fit in seamlessly
The line-up for the third and decisive match on Tuesday evening showed just how strong the Austrians have become. Rangnick changed his starting line-up in five positions compared to the 3-1 win against Poland, and two of the newcomers played a decisive role. The left-back Alexander Prass from Sturm Graz, in only his eighth international match, forced the Dutch own goal to make it 1-0, Schmid the 2-1. "You can see that no matter who is on the pitch, the principles apply."
Rangnick has instilled these principles deeply into his players. The basis of the Austrian game is a willingness to run, energetic pressing and team spirit. This team has been demonstrating this impressively for some time now. After a convincing qualifying campaign - one point behind Belgium, but nine ahead of Sweden - they were among the secret favorites at this European Championship and are impressively fulfilling this status.
Putting a setback behind them
Even an unfortunate 1:0 defeat after an own goal against France did not throw them off course. "Things often happen quickly in football," says Marcel Sabitzer. The Champions League finalist with Borussia Dortmund was the match-winner against the Netherlands with the 3:2 winning goal. "It's normal to have ups and downs. The question is how you deal with them."
The vice-captain also points to the width and automatisms. "You can see that we rotate and nothing is missing. Everyone knows their position and what they have to do." By winning the group, the Red-Whites have now earned a place in the round of 16, in which they will probably be the favorites.
In Leipzig, after a week's break, they will face the runners-up from Group F, probably Turkey or the Czech Republic. They defeated the Turks 6:1 in a thrilling test match in Vienna at the end of March. Will the trees now grow into the sky? Sabitzer doesn't want to look that far ahead just yet. "Now it's time to calm down again, clear our heads and then we'll keep attacking," he said immediately after the win against the Netherlands. Incidentally, the Austrians could only meet Switzerland in the semi-finals.
