After the unsurprising opening defeat against favorite England (0:2), the first key game awaits Austria’s soccer juniors today (5.30 p.m., ORF Sport +) at the U19 European Championship in Slovakia. With a victory over Israel, Martin Scherb’s team would be very close to the minimum goal, the play-off of the third-placed team for participation in the U20 World Cup in Indonesia. You could even have reached the semi-finals before the group final against Serbia on Saturday.
“We want to win the match, we don’t deal with arithmetic games,” emphasized Scherb. That would be the case after the game in Ziar nad Hronom at the earliest. “Every European Championship game is a highlight. We want to show that we didn’t come here and are satisfied with what we have achieved. We want something that can be counted on,” explained the team boss. “These are the demands on us. We are convinced of our quality.”
But the Israelis also have them, who have a compact defense and fast, technically good offensive players who are particularly dangerous in transition situations. “We have to take that away from them, then we have a good chance,” stressed Scherb, who has his full 20-man squad at his disposal. Two to three changes compared to the England match are possible because “we are well positioned across the board”. Addendum: “We also need fresh forces.” Because the tournament should last a long time for the ÖFB youngsters.
Pascal Fallmann also has ambitious goals. “I’m absolutely convinced that we have the better team than Israel. Our goal is three points,” said the ÖFB full-back. “We know what to expect. We have to be a bit more specific in our game going forward,” says defender Lukas Wallner. Rapid defender Leopold Querfeld also exudes confidence: “We did well against England. We won’t let this defeat knock us down,” said the 18-year-old.
The ÖFB U19 record against the Israelis, who only conceded the equalizer in injury time in the first group match against Serbia (2:2), is positive. There was a 3-0 win in 2014 and a 2-0 win in 2017.
Source: Nachrichten
