Coach Irene Fuhrmann’s team beat Slovakia 3-0 (2-0) on Tuesday evening in Wiener Neustadt. Julia Hickelsberger-Füller (18th) and Virginia Kirchberger (43rd) scored before the break, Laura Feiersinger (54th) then scored the final score. Slovakia found practically no possibility.
“Despite many changes, it was a very confident performance. We controlled the game through all phases and didn’t allow any significant chances to score,” said Fuhrmann in an ORF interview. As announced, the coach made the change after the 1-0 win in Italy. There were six changes in the starting eleven, Sarah Zadrazil, Barbara Dunst or captain Carina Wenninger were missing, as were goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger and Nicole Billa. On the right, Claudia Wenger (21 years old) from SKN St. Pölten made her debut in the senior team.
The Austrians made a powerful start in the duel between 19th (Austria) and 46th in the FIFA rankings, after six minutes of play there were already four corners for the home side. Austria’s goalkeeper Isabella Kresche only saw the ball from afar. After a little more than a quarter of an hour the time had come. Katja Wienerroither sent her strike partner into free space with a pass, Hickelsberger-Füller finished deliberately.
The offensive player from Hoffenheim was the only one to write in Italy last Friday. The 23-year-old was still hungry for goals, but Slovakian goalkeeper Maria Korenciova kept her eleven in the game for a long time. She defused a lob from Hickelsberger-Füller with a flight, and a Slovakian saved just before the goal line in the subsequent corner kick (33′).
The Slovaks then tried more vehemently, but unsuccessfully, to get on the offensive. Austria struck again shortly before the break. Kirchberger headed the ball unchallenged from a corner kick, and the central defender was happy to make her first appearance in almost a year. “I’m just happy that we were able to end the year with a win and dominated the game,” said Kirchberger after the game.
It didn’t get any more exciting after the change of sides. Kirchberger was still offside when it was supposed to be 3-0, Feiersinger quickly scored a low shot in her 101st international match to decide the game. 25 minutes before the end, a lively exchange phase began. This is how striker Eileen Campbell (Altach/Vorderland) made her team debut. The 22-year-old and Lisa Kolb, who also came on as a substitute, still found good opportunities to make it 4-0, then the final whistle sounded for the ÖFB-Elf of a year that had offered positive as well as less pleasant moments. After reaching the quarter-finals of the European Championship in July, there was a bitter hour to digest in October when they were eliminated from the World Cup play-off.
Source: Nachrichten
