European Championship qualification

ÖFB women secure important win against Poland

Sarah Puntigam scores the first goal.

(Bild: GEPA)

Austria's women's national soccer team picked up three important points away from home against Poland in qualifying for the 2025 European Championship on Tuesday. Sarah Puntigam, Lilli Purtscheller and Eileen Campbell scored for Austria in the 3:1 victory.

Austria's women's national soccer team has picked up its first points in the European Championship qualifiers at the second attempt. The ÖFB team beat Poland 3:1 in Gdynia on Tuesday thanks to goals from Sarah Puntigam (15), Lilli Purtscheller (66) and Eileen Campbell (92) and lived up to their role as favorites. The Austrians are now level on points with Iceland in second place in Group A4. Germany are still without a point after beating Iceland 3-1.

Irene Fuhrmann

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

ÖFB team boss Irene Fuhrmann did not change her starting eleven compared to the 2:3 home draw against the DFB team in Linz, and Katharina Schiechtl, who had been struggling recently, also started at right-back. In contrast to Friday, the Austrians found it difficult to get into the game this time as the favorites. The Polish side were more aggressive in tackles right from the start and were always dangerous, at least from the outset.

Puntigam misses the brace
Nevertheless, the first goal came from the other side and more or less out of nowhere. On one occasion, Purtscheller and Celina Degen combined well in the penalty area and Puntigam hit a powerful shot into the far corner with her strong left foot. It was the US international's 20th goal in her 144th international match. It was also Puntigam who almost scored a brace with a header shortly before the break (45.+2). Shortly before that, Manuela Zinsberger had had to make a top-drawer save from a Natalia Padilla shot in the only Polish chance of the first half (41').

As in Linz, the visitors overslept the restart a little and were punished for it. Ewelina Kamczyk (55') was not attacked at all, took a shot from almost 20 meters and equalized via the bottom edge of the crossbar. That was only a brief shock, however, and after a few minutes the ÖFB game regained a little more stability. Up front, Schiechtl (59') and Marie-Therese Höbinger (63') missed chances before Purtscheller scored her first goal in an ÖFB shirt in her tenth appearance.

Goal in stoppage time
The 20-year-old attacker from SGS Essen deflected a Dunst cross into the goal, with substitute Kayla Adamek from Poland only able to clear the ball behind the line. Purtscheller was rewarded for a strong performance on the right wing, as she had done against Germany. Dunst could have sealed the win, but missed the far corner (78'). The game remained tense, but Poland's top striker Ewa Pajor, who showed her class in a number of actions, and Co. were unable to beat Zinsberger again in front of more than 4,000 spectators.

In stoppage time, Campbell scored into the far corner after Kamczyk's misplaced pass. It was goal number seven for the Vorarlberg native in her 15th international match, having scored twice early on against Germany. Viktoria Pinther (94') then missed another one-timer. Nicole Billa, who made her 100th international appearance from the 73rd minute, was already on the pitch by then.

Austria survived their fourth consecutive match against Poland unbeaten, as they did in their most recent clash in the 2016 Cyprus Cup final. The qualifiers continue on May 31 (6 p.m.) with a home game against Iceland at the Innviertel Arena in Ried.