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© Sportreport
At the end of qualification for the European Championship, the women’s team celebrated a narrow 1-0 victory over Serbia and thus kept the opportunity. to a direct starting position in the 2022 final in England. Nicole Billa scored after an assist from Sarah Zadrazil in the 80th minute.
For Austrians, the game almost begins with the proverbial “cold shower.” Allegra Poljak receives the ball on the interface, lets her opponent out and shoots at the bar. (4.)
The ÖFB-Elf are struggling to get into the game and need until the 15th minute before Laura Wienroither finds her first chance to score. After a high pass from Jasmin Eder, the forward winger misses goalkeeper Milica Kostic.
After about 20 minutes, the local players find their way into the game a little better, but more than one shot from Barbara Dunst (23) that is too high does not look at this phase. Instead, Manuela Zinsberger saves before a distant shot from Dina Blagojevic. (24.)
Just seconds later, the strong ÖFB goalkeeper would have been powerless. Poljak carries the ball into the backcourt after a dangerous run down the flank, where Mijatovic only has to push but misses the ball. (26.)
Poljak, who stands out that night, has two top chances before the break. With his shot from an acute angle (35º) and one on one (38º), he finds his master in Zinsberger.
During the break ÖFB team boss Irene Fuhrmann changes, brings with Laura Feiersinger and Katharina Naschenweng two new forces and moves Sarah Puntigam to midfield. The Austrians now have a bit more access in midfield, but this initially does not affect offensive play.
Then shot to luck
For the Serbs in the second half, all danger comes from Poljak alone. Fortunately, the outer centers are still too imprecise for the ÖFB-Elf.
The Austrians begin the final offensive with a Sarah Zadrazil dribble along the baseline, which is still unsuccessful. (75.) A little later, however, the time has come.
After some good pressure, Zadrazil leans on Nicole Billa, who slides and makes the acclaimed 1-0. (80.) In the hectic final phase, the Fuhrmann-Elf remains calm and deserves the victory in time.
The decision whether the Austrians will go straight to the European Championship as one of the top three runners-up in the group will not be made until next year. The women of the ÖFB had already secured their participation in the playoffs.
The voices of the game:
Gold scorer Nicole Billa: “Of course I am very happy to have been able to help the team with the goal and to have won 1-0. In the situation in front of the goal, we put pressure on our opponents to make a mistake. So far I have not analyzed what the other groups are like, but we have done our homework. “
Captain Carina Wenninger, who made her 100th appearance in the women’s national team against Serbia: “The Serbs are a strong team, they were really good in Serbia and they did it smartly today against our pressure. Our team leader then changed at half time and from then on we had more access. Now, of course, I am happier that I was able to score the winning goal so late. “
“The large number of international matches is not that important to me. It’s about the moments you live together with the team. And of course, 100 is a number that shows you’ve had a lot of great moments already, and I’m proud of that. “
Goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger: “I am pleased that I was able to provide the team with the support they needed. The Serbs made life very difficult for us, it was difficult for us to get into the game, but we fought and in the end we only got the ball. We have shown that even one chance is enough to win a game like this in the end. Our team leader will now start calculating and then we’ll see if the direct rating works out. “
Irene Fuhrmann, Team Leader: “It was the difficult game that was expected, especially considering that we had France in our lap. The Serbs have great players, we barely got into the game. That improved a bit after we switched to 4-3-3 at halftime. “
“I’m very proud of the team that we managed to score all three points today, even if it wasn’t our best game and maybe it wasn’t really good. But first you have to win games like this. Now it is no longer in our hands. We will wait and see what happens in the other groups. “
ÖFB press release
01.12.2020
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