Afghanistan
Angola
Argentina
Asia (AFC)
Asian Games
Australia
Belgium-Netherlands
Brazil
Burkina Faso
Central American & Caribbean Games
Central American Games
Congo DR
Denmark
England
Europe (UEFA)
FYR Macedonia
Finland
Germany
Greece
International Tournaments
Italy
Mediterranean Games
Mexico
National
Nepal
North & Central America (Concacaf)
Palestine
Pan American Games
Panama
Russia
Scandinavia
Serbia And Montenegro
South American Games
Spain
Syria
USA
Venezuela
World (FIFA)
Yemen
Zimbabwe

Preview: Austria vs. Germany - prediction, team news, lineups

sportsmole.co.uk, 19 November 2023, 10:39
A short trip across the border awaits Germany on Tuesday evening, as Julian Nagelsmann's team take on Austria in their final international friendly of 2023.

Die Mannschaft were humbled 3-2 by Turkey in the weekend's exhibition fixture, while Austria cemented their place at the top of their Euro 2024 qualifying group by defeating Estonia 2-0.

Match preview

Not only will Austria be present at the European Championships for the third time on the bounce in 2024 - where they will endeavour to better their run to the last 16 at Euro 2020 - Ralf Rangnick's in-form charges are on course to be one of five entrants in Pot 1 alongside hosts Germany.

This week's hosts concluded their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with a straightforward 2-0 beating of Austria on Thursday evening thanks to first-half strikes from Konrad Laimer and Philipp Lienhart, which saw the Boys do all they can to pip Belgium to first place in Group F.

With 19 points to show from their eight qualification contests, Austria will go through to the Finals in first place should Belgium - who are two points worse off - fail to defeat Azerbaijan at home on Sunday, and while such a scenario is unlikely, a runners-up finish is still nothing to be scoffed at.

Since being given a rude awakening in the top tier of the Nations League last year, Austria have only been beaten in one of their last 11 fixtures competitive or not, with that sole defeat coming at the hands of Belgium in a Euro 2024 qualifier, and even then Rangnick's team came from 3-0 down to reduce the deficit to 3-2.

It has been nearly 12 months to the day that Austria overcame Italy 2-0 in a home friendly, but their only exhibition fixture on familiar territory this season was a forgettable affair, as Das Team were held to a 1-1 stalemate by Moldova two months ago, although that result was nowhere near as disappointing as Germany's most recent battle.

Leading his nation out for a home fixture for the very first time, ex-Bayern Munich and RB Leipzig manager Nagelsmann - who is sure to exchange a warm embrace with former Roten Bullen colleague Rangnick on the touchline - sought to build on a solid start to life in the Germany hotseat against Turkey.

The 36-year-old had overseen a 3-1 beating of the USA in his maiden match in charge before a 2-2 draw with Mexico in Philadelphia last month, and all was well and good for Germany against Turkey when Kai Havertz - deployed in a peculiar left-back role - opened the scoring with five minutes gone.

However, Ferdi Kadioglu and Kenan Yildiz turned the game around in front of a large contingent of Turkey supporters before the break, and while Niclas Fullkrug got Germany back on level terms, his efforts were rendered futile by Yusuf Sari's 70th-minute spot kick, which Havertz conceded with a contentious handball.

Turkey's stellar triumph marked a fifth loss from 10 friendly matches for Germany during their troubled 2023, which began with a routine 2-0 victory over Peru, but the three-time European champions have now gone nine games without a clean sheet and must address such concerns as a matter of priority lest they risk another early tournament exit on home turf next year.

Speaking of nine-game sequences, Germany strolled to that number of consecutive wins against Austria in a 19-year spell from 1994 to 2013, but Das Team emerged victorious 2-1 in the most recent meeting during a 2018 friendly, where Martin Hinteregger and Alessandro Schopf cancelled out a Mesut Ozil opener.

Austria friendly form:

D

Austria form (all competitions):

W

D

W

L

W

W

Germany friendly form:

L

L

W

W

D

L

Advert - content below:

Team News

Tuesday's game would have seen the return of Austria striker Guido Burgstaller from suspension; the 34-year-old was ineligible to face Estonia due to an accumulation of yellow cards, but he was not called up to his national team this month anyway.

Rangnick did not lose any players to injury during the clash with Estonia, where Laimer's half-time substitution was seemingly a tactical decision, but Red Bull Salzburg defender Samson Baidoo had to withdraw from the squad prior to that win due to an adductor issue.

Barring any unforeseen glitches, Rangnick ought to put out a similar starting lineup to the one that took care of business in Tallinn, although all-time top appearance maker Marko Arnautovic was only a substitute in that victory alongside Wolverhampton Wanderers marksman Sasa Kalajdzic.

Similarly, Germany boss Nagelsmann has not seen any new concerns arise from the loss to Turkey, although Felix Nmecha, Malick Thiaw, Robin Gosens and Marc-Andre ter Stegen all withdrew from the squad following their call-ups.

While Havertz's evening as a left-back started out brilliantly, Nagelsmann should now consider bringing in a more recognisable option in David Raum, while Niklas Sule and Mats Hummels ought to come into contention for defensive starts after Saturday's capitulation.

With 10 goals in just 12 international appearances, only Serge Gnabry (11 matches) has reached double figures for the national team in quicker time over the past 45 years than Fullkrug, who may be joined by the Bayern Munich winger in a mildly rejigged attacking third.

Austria possible starting lineup:

Schlager; Posch, Lienhart, Alaba, Wober; Sabitzer, Seiwald, Baumgartner; Laimer, Arnautovic, Kainz

Germany possible starting lineup:

Trapp; Henrichs, Tah, Rudiger, Raum; Gundogan, Kimmich; Sane, Wirtz, Gnabry; Fullkrug

We say: Austria 1-1 Germany

Still acclimatising to Nagelsmann's methods, Germany's hopes of bouncing straight back from their lowly loss to Turkey will not exactly be high at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion, especially with Austria having two more days of rest to work with.

Previews by email

Top News

14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Kazakhstan vs. Austria (Thursday, 3.00pm) Amid a three-way battle for promotion from League B Group 3, Austria aim to improve their prospects with a win on Thursday, when they meet Kazakhstan in the UEFA Nations League. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Athletico Paranaense can temporarily climb out of the Brasileiro Serie A relegation zone with a victory over Atletico Mineiro on Saturday at Arena de Baixada. 14 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk England interim manager Lee Carsley has played down Harry Kane's strong words about the withdrawal of many of his teammates, insisting he is looking forward to working with other players who also deserve a chance. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly fearful that Lisandro Martinez could spend an extended spell on the sidelines with the hip injury that has forced him to withdraw from Argentina duty. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Sporting Lisbon wing-back Maximiliano Araujo has hinted that he hopes to join Pep Guardiola at Manchester City in the near future. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Morocco will be looking to maintain their 100% record in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers when they visit the Stade de Franceville to take on Gabon on Friday. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk San Marino will hope to leapfrog Gibraltar and prevent them from earning promotion from their UEFA Nations League D group when they welcome them to Stadio Olimpico di Serravalle on Friday. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk In their fifth UEFA Nations League C match of 2024-25, Northern Ireland are set to host Belarus on Friday at Windsor Park, with victory enough to guarantee a place in the top two. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Zimbabwe will be hoping to book their place at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations when they face Kenya on matchday five of qualifying this Friday at the Peter Mokaba Stadium. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United could reportedly move for Everton centre-back Jarrad Branthwaite and Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez during next summer's transfer window. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool should arguably be considered favourites for Premier League glory after they took charge of the title race last weekend when they beat Aston Villa 2-0 at Anfield and moved five points ahead of second-placed Manchester City. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Burnley could reportedly offer Ruud van Nistelrooy the chance to make a swift return to English football, with the Clarets interested in bringing him in as their new manager. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Cristiano Ronaldo is set to lead Portugal out in Porto when they face Poland in the UEFA Nations League on Friday night. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk England captain Harry Kane has expressed his disappointment at the number of players to have withdrawn from the Three Lions squad for their UEFA Nations League fixtures with Greece and Republic of Ireland. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona centre-back Pau Cubarsi has been handed a call-up to the Spain squad for the national team's November international fixtures against Denmark and Switzerland in the UEFA Nations League. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid youngster Marc Cucalon has been forced to retire from professional football at the age of 19 due to a serious knee injury which he suffered in the latter stages of 2022. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona have revealed that Ansu Fati has been ruled out for around four weeks with a hamstring injury. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Portugal manager Roberto Martinez is facing a crisis at centre-back ahead of their UEFA Nations League clash with Poland in Porto on Friday night. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Portugal welcome Poland to Porto on matchday five of the UEFA Nations League on Friday night. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes has said that it is "the right moment" for Ruben Amorim to arrive at Old Trafford, claiming that the Portuguese "did something very special" at Sporting Lisbon. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal defender Ben White has apparently gone under the knife to treat a joint issue in his knee, which will sideline the Englishman for around two months. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid have reportedly identified Al-Nassr centre-back Aymeric Laporte and Tottenham Hotspur right-back Pedro Porro as two of their top defensive targets for 2025. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool are reportedly among three Premier League clubs interested in FC Nordsjaelland full-back Daniel Svensson. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool are reportedly among three Premier League clubs interested in FC Nordsjaelland full-back Daniel Svensson. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Botswana will host Mauritania in their penultimate 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier at Francistown Stadium on Friday. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia has provided a positive injury update ahead of potentially representing Belgium. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Scotland's stay in the UEFA Nations League's top tier could be brought to its end on Friday, when they face an almost must-win game against League A Group 1 rivals Croatia. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Lamine Yamal is among a number of absentees for Spain, as the national side conclude their 2024-25 UEFA Nations League group-stage campaign with fixtures against Denmark and Switzerland. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Spain will be bidding to secure top spot in Group 4 of League A in the 2024-25 UEFA Nations League when they head to Denmark on Friday evening for what is shaping up to be an intriguing affair. 13 November 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Brighton & Hove Albion forward Danny Welbeck has claimed that speculation regarding a potential return to Manchester United is "irrelevant".