The general conditions at Franco Foda’s farewell as ÖFB team boss in today’s sportingly rather irrelevant test match against Scotland in Vienna’s Happel Stadium (8.45 p.m.) are anything but ideal. After being eliminated in the World Cup qualifier on Thursday, Austria’s team will feel its loss of popularity, because no more than 5000 tickets could be sold in advance. A third of that went to Scottish fans. A spectator minus record is imminent: The smallest attendance of an international match (without capacity restrictions) in Vienna was in November 1987, when no more than 6,200 fans wanted to see the ÖFB team in the European Championship qualifier against Romania (0:0). In addition to Foda, who was ÖFB team boss for four and a half years, Aleksandar Dragovic also deserved a better backdrop. The defender is playing his 100th international match today and is getting closer and closer to Austria’s record player Andreas Herzog (103 appearances).
Foda himself is looking forward to his last game in office. “I’ll enjoy that again – including the national anthem.” His players want to deliver a suitable result when they say goodbye. Arnautovic: “It’s normal for us that we want to give the coach a perfect farewell game.”
Is the opponent playing along? The ÖFB team has not won four games in a row against Scotland, the last home win dates back to 1978. The Scots have also been unbeaten in seven games since the beginning of September, a 0-2 in Denmark, and have won six of them. After their 1-1 draw against Poland in Warsaw on Thursday, they probably won’t be at their best today. “Maybe I’ll rotate a bit more than usual,” announced Scotland team boss Steve Clarke. It is quite possible that defensive artists Kieran Tierney (Arsenal) and Scott McTominay (Manchester United), for example, will be given a break.
The ÖFB team has already made a very good move: It is donating 125,000 euros to a Ukraine aid organization.
Source: Nachrichten
