Patrick Pentz: 2
The goalkeeper showed that he is the best footballer in the ÖFB goalie trio. Because of Denmark’s pressing, he often got the ball and then passed it on calmly and accurately. He also thwarted Yussuf Poulsen’s top chance and deflected Christian Eriksen’s shot around the post. Pentz collected many arguments to be number one in the ÖFB team in the future.
Christopher Trimmel: 3
The right flank was the offensively better side of the Austrians: the right-back constantly switched forwards, but there were a few problems in reverse: he didn’t do well with Yussuf Poulsen’s chance when Stefan Posch lost the header duel. At 1:2 he only trotted towards Lars Stryger Larsen – the Dane used the free space for his artistic shot to win.
Stefan Posch (until 63rd): 3rd
The centre-back started solidly alongside David Alaba. A lost header duel against Martin Braithwaite and a stumble gave Yussuf Poulsen the chance to make it 2-0. Posch retired injured after an hour.
David Alaba: 2
Finally, the Champions League winner also played in the national team in the position that is his best. As a left central defender, he showed why: good positional play and tackling skills were accompanied by strong passes.
Marco Friedl (until 78th): 3rd place
The left defender should give the width when in possession of the ball so that frontman Dejan Ljubicic could have moved more into the center, where he feels more comfortable. But Friedl could not find the forward gear. Very little went over the left side. At 0-1 he first gave Rasmus Kristensen too much space and then was unlucky to deflect the cross, making it the perfect assist for goalscorer Pierre-Emile Höjbjerg. Friedl too often got himself into trouble by clumsy duels.
Xavier Schlager: 2
The central midfielder shone as a driver, ball conqueror and organizer in central midfield. He crowned his strong performance with a goal to equalize. When it was 0:1, he wasn’t quite up to speed after the Danish free-kick was played quickly.
Nicolas Seiwald: 3
The second central midfielder also showed an appealing performance, but didn’t stand out as much as his neighbor Schlager. At 0: 1, the staggering between the two did not fit, so the defensive midfield duo was played out with a pass.
Konrad Laimer: 2
With the support of Christopher Trimmel, the Leipzig legionnaire was able to play to his strengths: in a constant sprint, he put pressure on the ball. He was an asset but towards the end of the game precision suffered from the high tempo.
Dejan Ljubicic (until 45th): 3rd
The Cologne legionnaire should actually be pushed into the middle by Marco Friedl. But because the back man didn’t give any width, Ljubicic had to occupy the wing on the offensive. There he was conspicuous with runs behind the defensive chain, when a header was dropped on Kalajdzic he was offside. When conceding a goal, Friedl didn’t fit defensively, nobody felt responsible for Rasmus Kristensen.
Christoph Baumgartner (until 45th): 3rd
The Hoffenheim offensive player acted next to or directly behind striker Kalajdzic, but was not conspicuous because the interaction did not work. But as usual, he threw himself into the duels with full commitment.
Sasa Kalajdzic (until 45th): 3rd
The center forward was unlucky. Because of his size, he often appears more immobile than he actually is. The Stuttgart striker destroyed technically good solutions even with sloppy passes.
Marcel Sabitzer (from 46th): 2
Thanks to his substitution, there were also dangerous moments from the left after the break. He brought the strikers into play with strong passes.
Marko Arnautovic (from 46th): 2
It is the best Arnautovic that Austria fans have seen in the team so far: after his substitution at the break, he made a stir and prepared the equalizer in his 100th international match. The goal for the anniversary prevented the rod.
Michael Gregoritsch (from 46th): 2
The second joker also revived Austria’s pressing in the front row: he threw himself into a pass from Kasper Schmeichel and then had the calm to lay it down for assistant Marko Arnautovic.
Kevin Danso (from 63rd): 2
Substituting for the injured Stefan Posch, he continued his strong performance against the Croatians. The Lens legionnaire showed his form with good duels and clever passes.
Maximilian Wöber (from 78th): 0
Used too briefly.
Source: Nachrichten
