ÖFB optimistic about Arnautovic after Rangnick’s trip to Milan

While it will be a difficult race against time for David Alaba to win, Marko Arnautovic’s chances of taking part in the tournament are good despite his recent thigh muscle injury. To ensure that it stays that way, Rangnick paid his club Inter Milan a visit before the current international break.

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Rangnick was in Milan on Saturday with rehabilitation coach Martin Hämmerle and ÖFB nutrition expert Martin Rinderer. “Simply to try as best as possible with everyone involved to ensure that he doesn’t miss Inter or us due to muscular problems,” said sports director Peter Schöttel at the ÖFB team camp in Marbella. Arnautovic will turn 35 in April, Schöttel reminded. “It’s important that you do the right things, eat the right things, train the right things. But everyone is behind it anyway,” said the sports director.

Inter is also interested in an exchange with the ÖFB due to their injury history. Austria’s record national player was already out for six weeks this season due to an injury to the hamstring muscles. He suffered one again a week ago and will therefore miss the first two international matches of the year on Saturday in Bratislava against Slovakia and the following Tuesday in Vienna against Turkey. Even in his first season in Bologna (2021/22), Arnautovic was repeatedly plagued by muscle injuries.

“We won’t know more until May”

For Alaba, the first two European Championship tests were not an issue after he tore his cruciate ligament in December. The ÖFB captain is currently completing his rehabilitation in Madrid. “What I hear is that everything is going well,” said Schöttel. “We won’t know more until May, I guess.” The ÖFB team will start its immediate preparations for the European Championship on May 29th in Windischgarsten. Rangnick has to name his final tournament squad on June 7th, the first European Championship game follows on June 17th against France.

It is unclear how many Rapid players will appear in the European Championship squad. Rangnick did without Marco Grüll and Guido Burgstaller as well as goalkeeper Niklas Hedl in the first course of the year, not least because of their abusive chants after the Vienna derby at the end of February. But the team boss still invited three Rapiders to Spain: Leopold Querfeld, Matthias Seidl and debutant Christoph Lang. Only RB Leipzig currently has that many national players. Schöttel was all the more bothered by the insults some Rapid fans chanted against Rangnick on Friday during the Green-Whites’ home league game against LASK (0-0). “It’s not nice, you shouldn’t do that,” said the Viennese, who once played 527 competitive games for Rapid as a defender. His 436 league appearances are still a club record. “Within Austria, Rapid has the most call-ups,” emphasized Schöttel.

The Hütteldorfer team, along with Red Bull Salzburg, are also the most strongly represented in the youth national teams. The reason? Rapid, under academy director Willi Schuldes, pursued a concept that was “a little different,” said Schöttel. “Many clubs have copied Salzburg, including in the youth ranks.” Rapid, on the other hand, always paid close attention to the playful line – even in the youth teams.