Now Haaland awaits

Frustration in the ÖFB team: “We’re angry with ourselves”

Captain Marcel Sabitzer was disappointed after the draw against Slovenia.

(Bild: AFP/APA/Jure Makovec)

The mood in the ÖFB team was subdued after the 1:1 in the Nations League opener in Slovenia. Instead of the hoped-for success, the red-white-red footballers had to settle for a point in Ljubljana on Friday. "Normally we have to win the game, so of course we're disappointed," said Marcel Sabitzer, who still saw "room for improvement" ahead of the clash in Norway on Monday (20:45).

Like many of his team-mates, Sabitzer criticized the pitch conditions in the Stozice stadium shortly before midnight on Friday, which was one of the reasons for the lack of precision in Austria's direct play. "The precision was lacking, which is not easy when there are always humps on the pitch," emphasized the BVB international. "We have our strengths when it comes to combining through, which is why the pitch was pretty crucial today," added ÖFB goalkeeper Patrick Pentz.

Looking ahead to the upcoming tasks, Sabitzer still saw room for improvement. "When you play against a deep-lying opponent, you need solutions. That will come our way more often because opponents know our quality," explained the captain. Romano Schmid had a similar view. "We're all a bit annoyed with ourselves that we didn't manage to bring the quality onto the pitch," said the Werder legionnaire. Nicolas Seiwald also mourned the missed victory. "We'll take the point, but we could have done better," said the midfielder.

There is not much time for reflection anyway. On Saturday, the ÖFB team already had a trip to Oslo on the agenda, where two days later they will face off against the Scandinavians led by goalscorer Erling Haaland. Team boss Ralf Rangnick's charges are looking forward to the clash with the exceptional 24-year-old Manchester City player, but the ÖFB players are not too worried. "If we put everything into it as a collective, then a world-class individual player like that will have a hard time," said Kevin Stöger.

Stöger celebrated his debut
The 31-year-old celebrated his international debut on Friday at an advanced age, but after coming on as a substitute in the 82nd minute, the Borussia Mönchengladbach attacker was unable to make a decisive impact in front of his family and friends. "Of course I'm proud and happy about my debut. But on the other hand, I'm a guy who always wants to win. That's why I can't just go to bed with a smiling face, there's also a sadness to it," emphasized Stöger.

Kevin Stöger celebrated his ÖFB debut.

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

In any case, there should be another reason to celebrate in Norway. "We hope that we'll put in a better performance than today," said Patrick Wimmer. The group is difficult, as Norway's 0-0 draw in Kazakhstan on Friday showed. "We're full of juice, it was just difficult and I think it will be better on Monday," added the Wolfsburg professional.