ÖFB team: The Rangnick bonus helps against Andorra

There have already been more attractive international matches for the Austrian national football team: In Malaga, Spain, the ÖFB selection will meet Andorra today during the current short training camp (6 p.m., ORF 1). On Sunday, the home game against Italy is still on the agenda at the Ernst Happel Stadium.

Normally, there would have been a great danger that it would be raining cancellations, especially from the top players from the German Bundesliga. In the past, the list of similar games was long. But Ralf Rangnick’s bonus as team boss was also reflected in this case: from David Alaba to Marko Arnautovic to Marcel Sabitzer, everyone is at the current training camp. There hasn’t been a single “pseudo cancellation”, the few injury-related withdrawals are all understandable. After all, the current international doubles are already the dress rehearsal for the qualification for the European Championship in Germany, which begins in March 2023.

No reaction to Ronaldo

Rangnick didn’t react much to Cristiano Ronaldo’s criticism yesterday. “If you’re not even a coach, how can you be boss of Manchester United? After the club sacked Ole (Note: Solskjaer), they bring in Ralf Rangnick, which nobody understands. This guy isn’t even a coach. A big club like Manchester United bring a sporting director who surprises not only me but the whole world,” Ronaldo said in an interview. Rangnick spoke for the first time yesterday in Spain without really going into detail: “It’s not my job to evaluate that. That’s the job of those in charge at Manchester United – and also of sports journalists. I don’t belong to either of the two professional groups. I am Team boss and coach of the Austrian national team, so I’m not responsible for interviews given by someone who plays for Manchester United.”