[ad_1]
PRIVILEGED: Austria captain Julian Baumgartlinger, here in action against Northern Ireland, acknowledges that footballers in Europe are spoiled. Photo: JOE KLAMAR / AFP
VIENNA (VG) While the Austrian population is under a curfew, the Austrian national team and the Norwegian emergency national team will settle for a victory in the Nations League.
– We are very privileged in this situation. We have no travel restrictions. In principle, we are extremely spoiled, says Austrian Bayer Leverkusen midfielder Julian Baumgartlinger at Tuesday’s digital press conference.
A few hours earlier, strict restrictions went into effect in Vienna and the rest of Austria. “Every social contact is too much,” is the grim message from Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. Vienna’s streets were heavily populated when VG arrived in the city on Monday as people took the last chance to visit the open shops, but on Tuesday the capital looks like a ghost town.
– It is important that the population now have a meeting point. Soccer is very important to many people, says national team coach Franco Foda.
also read
This is the time trial match of the emergency national team: test results are missing 34 hours before the match
Until Saturday, he had expected Austria to meet Erling Braut Haaland, Martin Ødegaard and several players from the highly regarded Norwegian national team. Instead, his team has struggled and worked hard to find out as much as possible about the 18 new players that make up Norway’s emergency national team.
– We have studied all the players intensively and analyzed them. We’ve also looked at how Leif Gunnar Smerud played, be it 3-5-2 or 4-4-2, says Foda and continues:
– Among other things, we have used programs like Wyscout to be able to see all the players. We also know, for example, Mats Møller Dæhli from before when he played in St. Pauli. We also know that Smerud has exchanged ideas with Lars Lagerbäck about plans and how they can play. We are also prepared for the fact that many of the Norwegian players see this as an opportunity to be able to show themselves on the field.
– Are you happy you don’t have to meet Haaland?
– I don’t care so much who plays the game. We know Haaland is a good player, but we are preparing to face Norway, not Haaland, says Foda.
