Nations League: ÖFB team expect hard work in Belfast

First place in Nations League Group B1 remains the stated goal of Foda and his team. After the victory in Norway and the defeat at home to Romania, the team is two games to one point behind the Romanians, who are waiting outside on Wednesday. The Northern Irish are two points behind Austria after two games with a draw and a loss.

So far, team boss Ian Baraclough’s team has had a respectable 1: 1 in Romania in the Nations League, but also a bitter 1: 5 debacle at home against the Norwegians. In return, they celebrated a sense of accomplishment on Thursday: an away win on penalties against Bosnia-Herzegovina in November in the play-off final at home against Slovakia for a European Championship place postponed until 2021.

While the Northern Irishmen were exhausting 120 minutes in Sarajevo, the ÖFB team recently completed a much less stressful test match against Greece and also have a longer rest day. But that’s not an advantage for his team, team boss Franco Foda said on Friday before the flight from Klagenfurt to Belfast. “You won, that gives you energy,” said the German. Northern Ireland team boss Ian Baraclough announced changes due to the tight schedule. “You can’t expect the same team to play three games in six days,” said the coach, “we will be competitive no matter which team we use.”

Swot Requirement: “Keep the pace of play high”

Foda is set for an intense game at Windsor Park, where 600 spectators are allowed on Sunday. “They (the Northern Irish, keep in mind) never give up and can play football well. We have to be 100 percent to survive there, ”said the 54-year-old, who followed the Northern Irishmen against the Bosnians on video. One thing struck Foda in particular with the guests: “They were very efficient,” said the Austrian team boss. According to Foda, the Northern Irish should not have time to get into the game. “It will also be important that we keep up with the game and then exploit the opponent’s weaknesses like ice,” Foda said before the last training session in Belfast on Saturday.

Compared to the two duels of two years ago, Northern Ireland now seems more variable with coach Ian Baraclough. “They play more flexibly with the new coach,” Foda said. “The team is very flexible in the game and constantly changes position in the last zone. But we are prepared for that ”. Christoph Baumgartner, the Austrian offensive climber, emphasized that he wanted to accept the “intense game” of the Northern Irishmen and reach “at least the same level”. “If we play our soccer class, then I am convinced that we can add all three points.”

With Foda, the ÖFB team completed two matches in the Nations League two years ago. Both times it seemed like a close victory. At home, thanks to a goal from Marko Arnautovic, who was absent this time, he won 1-0, away from goals from Xaver Schlager and Valentino Lázaro, who this time also absent due to injury, celebrated a 2-1 victory. Especially in the Belfast game, David Alaba and company got into trouble a few times, which should be avoided this time. “To do this, we have to be compact, but also creative,” says Foda.

Pervan number one for now

The team leader left it open with which alignment and which system should be successful. With one exception: Pavao Pervan will be in goal as against the Greeks. Perván didn’t get a single heavy ball against Greece, but he still had to get behind him once. “I know. It was not the first game of my career that was like this,” said the 32-year-old. At Windsor Park there will probably be more work waiting for Pervan, like standards and high balls at sixteen. “It will bring us a lot,” the goalkeeper suspected and spoke of his “biggest test to date” before his third international match.

Foda has yet to make a decision for Wednesday’s match in Ploiesti: Heinz Lindner or Jörg Siebenhandl could also start against Romania. Only at the beginning of qualifying for the World Cup in March 2021, Foda wants to decide on a goal from a long-term shot. “At the moment it doesn’t make any sense,” the 54-year-old said, referring to the failures of Alexander Schlager and Cican Stankovic. LASK goalkeeper is not injured, Stankovic was unable to travel to Salzburg due to positive coronavirus tests.

Praise returns

However, the post where the Alaba returnees will be used remained open until the start of the match. The Bayern legionnaire, who is about to make his first international appearance since November 2019, has been a central defender for the record German champions for nearly a year, Foda used in various roles on the wing. “David can play very well everywhere,” was the coach’s comment on the team’s 72-time player.

Besides Alaba, Schlager also returns to the team compared to the Greece game. Sasa Kalajdzic, who last suffered from muscle problems, took part in training on Thursday and should be ready for action in Belfast. The team also flew to Northern Ireland on Friday to have a buffer for potential pandemic-related problems. “Our previous arrival also has to do with Corona. We just want to be there as soon as possible and we have good training conditions there, ”said Foda.

Romania: from “an advantage”

On Monday he goes to Ploiesti, where the duel with Romania is scheduled for Wednesday. Before that, the Eastern Europeans compete in Norway and have to face defeat in the semi-final of the EM play-off against Iceland. For Foda, on the other hand, the departure of the Romanians was not inconvenient, because the European Championship of June 13, 2021 in Bucharest will not be against the co-organizer, but against Georgia or North Macedonia. “It is definitely an advantage that the Romanians can no longer qualify, they would have had a home game at the European Championship. But Georgia and North Macedonia are also strong opponents, ”Foda said.