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The trials and tribulations surrounding the crown trials in series champion Red Bull Salzburg kept Austria’s soccer team boss Franco Foda busy ahead of Wednesday’s test match (8.30pm / ORF 1) in Luxembourg. The German had faced numerous new developments in the team situation in recent hours, it only seemed half clear during Tuesday. It is now clear that Salzburg professionals Andreas Ulmer and Cican Stankovic will be available for the Nations League matches at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium on Sunday against Northern Ireland and the following Wednesday against Norway. For Luxembourg, the two are not a problem because they missed the mandatory UEFA exam, which took place on Tuesday.
His clubmate, also originally nominated, Albert Vallci was placed on the watch list. The defender was only destined for the duel with the Grand Duchy team.
It is also certain that Alessandro Schöpf, Romania’s last winning scorer, is out with a calf injury. Furthermore, Maximilian Ullmann does not travel to Luxembourg. As a precaution, Rapid’s left-back remains in Vienna after Rapid also had a positive group test, but could still join the ÖFB selection for Nations League games. Philipp Wiesinger (LASK) and Jörg Siebenhandl (Sturm), who were nominated on Tuesday, take their places on the plane bound for Luxembourg.
Due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, Foda recently had to deal more with personnel issues than tactics. “The last two days were very turbulent. On Sunday I traveled to Vienna relaxed, everything was fine. But then the situation developed in a different direction,” the 54-year-old said on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the situation has calmed down a bit, said Foda. “Now we can go back to concentrating on the sport.” The team leader informed his protégés on Tuesday morning through a video study about the opponent, that, like the ÖFB team, he will not compete with the best cast; In Luxembourg, the focus is also on the upcoming Nations League matches, in which the state team of 610,000 inhabitants is about to win the group and thus on the sensational promotion to class B.
An opportunity for second-line players
Foda has not yet questioned the importance of the game at Stade Josy Barthel. “There are no meaningless games. This is a friendly match, you can still try something,” emphasized the national coach. “This is an important game for the Nations League, we want to present ourselves well.”
The duel with number 95 in the FIFA world rankings – Austria is ranked 25 – offers many in the second row the opportunity to recommend themselves for qualification for the World Cup and the MS next year. “One or the other can now prove their worth,” Foda said. The team boss is expected to travel to Luxembourg with 21 players on Wednesday. David Alaba, Marcel Sabitzer, Xaver Schlager, Christoph Baumgartner and Stefan Lainer are safe and, like Ulmer and Stankovic, ready for action in the Nations League. Due to the lack of Alaba, Ulmer, Ullmann and Marco Friedl, Foda currently does not have a true left defender on the team.
Martin Hinteregger, on the other hand, is ready and wants to play the next international triple in full. “You can manage three games in a week,” Carinthian said. Unlike many colleagues, Hinteregger is not represented in a European competition with Eintracht Frankfurt this year. “European Cup holders can take advantage of a break, but for non-international players, it’s not a problem,” said the 28-year-old, who will likely also wear the armband of the player’s leader, Julian Baumgartlinger.(May / what)
