Group G: Poland, Austria, Israel, Slovenia, Macedonia*, Latvia How to advance: 1. Top two group finishers qualify for Europe 2. Group winners from the Nations League guaranteed themselves at least a playoff spot. 3. Groups without such nations (Macedonia in this group) or in which the group winners advance via the top two places send the third place team. So the top two will advance from this group.
Austria 0 - 1 Poland Bad to lose the first match of qualifying at home, but probably best that it was to Poland. Israel and Slovenia tied, which is a favorable result for Austria, I'd say.
Israel 4 - 2 Austria No points from the first two matches puts Austria behind the eight ball. Will need to win at home against Israel and really can’t afford any more missteps. Very tough road to qualifying now.
Austria 1 - 0 Slovenia North Macedonia 1 - 4 Austria Six important points this week have Austria righting the ship somewhat. They're now in third, one point behind Israel, and face point-less Latvia next. There will be no catching Poland which has a perfect record so far, but Austria might even finish the first round of opponents in the second qualifying spot. Critical matches ahead are the two in October, home to Israel and at Slovenia.
Group G Won Draws Lost GD Points Poland 4 0 0 8 12 Israel 2 1 1 1 7 Austria 2 0 2 1 6 Slovenia 1 2 1 4 5 North Macedonia 1 1 2 -2 4 Latvia 0 0 4 -12 0 Sept Games 9/5 Israel - Macedonia 9/6 Austria - Latvia 9/6 Slovenia - Poland 9/9 Poland - Austria 9/9 Slovenia - Israel 9/9 Latvia - Macedonia
Austria 6 - 0 Latvia Big win over last-place Latvia puts Austria into second place in the group. Israel only drew at home to North Macedonia, and Poland lost at Slovenia. As a result, Austria actually boasts the best goal-difference in the group.
UEFA write-up: https://www.uefa.com/european-qualifiers/season=2020/matches/round=2001086/match=2026185/?iv=true
Poland 0 - 0 Austria Earning a point at top-placed Poland would be considered a coup, but in this case, I think Austria might be disappointed, as they outshot Poland 14-5 and had almost 2/3 possession. Slovenia beat Israel to leap into second place.
Austria 3 - 1 Israel Another good result for Austria that propelled them into second place. Slovenia lost at Macedonia, so those two countries are two points back. Next two matches in Slovenia and home to Macedonia are huge.
Slovenia 0 - 1 Austria Huge result for Austria which almost guarantees a top-two group finish. Now a five-point lead over both Macedonia and Slovenia with two rounds remaining. Next is a home match against Macedonia where a draw could clinch it.
Austria 2 - 1 Macedonia Celebrations in Vienna as Austria secured second place and qualification for Euro 2020! The match really wasn’t as close as the final score. Alaba put the Austrians up early, and they added a second right after halftime. Macedonia had some chances in the final 15 minutes, but the fact that they needed three goals deflated the drama. They did cut the lead with the last action of the match. Hardly a break in the Austrian celebrations before the final whistle sounded and 40k+ fans went home happy.
Latvia 1 - 0 Austria With qualification secured, Austria featured only one starter from the previous match. Even so, they can't be happy losing to Latvia, which hadn't earned a single point the entire campaign. Oh well, on to Euro 2020, where Austria has been placed in Pot 3 for the draw.
Did a preview blog for the upcoming tournament. Please have a look and see what you folks think. Share feedback/comments, join the fantasy league. Spoiler Alert: I did my bracket and ended up with Italy Expecting a great and wide open tournament. https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-italy.html https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-b-belgium.html https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-c-austria.html https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-d-croatia-czech.html https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-e-poland.html https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-f-france.html
Austria 3 - 1 North Macedonia Austria leads Group C after a nice win over North Macedonia. A series of blunders by the center back (clearance bounced back off a teammate) and the keeper (spilled a comfortable ball on the ground) led to the only goal conceded. Pretty comfortable for the Austrians, though. A draw with Ukraine should be enough to advance.
Austria 0 - 2 Netherlands Austria 1 - 0 Ukraine Nice win against Ukraine today. Could have scored a bunch more, and the three points were deserved. Finished second in Group C and will now face Italy in the Quarterfinals. Tough assignment.
Hollow consolation, but I was thoroughly impressed by Austria during the tournament. Of course they were great against Italy, but even in other games the likes of Baumgartner, Laimer and Schlager show a bright future with Alaba and Sabitzer to add some c;assy veteran leadership.
Round of 16 Austria 1 - 2 Italy (AET) Austria played well and took Italy to extra time in the Round of 16. Could have prevailed with a bit of luck. Given that Italy went on to dispose of both Belgium and Spain to reach the final, that result looks even more impressive. Probably finished about where projected, but their play exceeded expectations. Really good Euro 2020 for the Austrians!
Same position expected them to get to, but the way they fought against Italy was impressive. https://footballfutbolcalciosoccer.blogspot.com/2021/06/euro-2020-preview-group-c-austria.html - Nailed the prediction with them though. "The Austrians disappointed in their last trip to the Euros but this more seasoned bunch supported by the aforementioned promising talent appears primed to be better this time around. They should advance from this group possibly even in 2nd place no less. Unfortunately for them, the way the bracket unfolds thereafter though is highly unlikely to favour any further progress." I like the group and think they should be challenging to get a WC2022, good young, quality squad and with decent depth.