Austria defeated the Netherlands in a thrilling five-goal match, and thanks to Marcel Sabitzer’s late goal, they advanced as Group D victors to the Euro 2024 knockout stages.
In a thrilling match in Berlin, Ralf Rangnick’s well-organized and impressive team was twice pegged back, but 10 minutes from time, Sabitzer had the last word.
After Cody Gakpo levelled the score, an own goal by Donyell Malen gave Austria an early lead, which was then restored by Romano Schmid.
The Netherlands’ second equaliser, scored by Memphis Depay, was insufficient as Austria ultimately overtook them and runners-up France, who were held to a 1-1 draw by Poland in Dortmund.
After just six minutes, Austria were rewarded for their strong start when Malen diverted a low cross from Alexander Prass into his own net.
The Netherlands found it difficult to answer as Malen narrowly missed a chance to make up for his previous mistake and Tijjani Reijnders missed the target.
Austria appeared even more dangerous after Sabitzer’s attempt was blocked and Bart Verbruggen was forced to make a save. Marko Arnautovic wasted a fantastic opportunity from close range before Florian Grillitsch also put the custodian to the test.
In just the 35th minute, Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman brought in Xavi Simons to reenergize his team, and it paid off when Gakpo’s excellent equaliser resulted from his break.
But the Dutch were never in the lead for long, as 12 minutes later the excellent Schmid headed in a header after a lovely cross from Grillitsch.
When Depay skillfully controlled a nod down from Wout Weghorst and shot in, the Netherlands once again tied the score, but VAR later reversed the original decision that he handled the ball.
However, Austria was not finished and struck back again when Sabitzer discovered space to the left of the field and then fired a strong shot from a close angle into the net’s roof.
Even though Weghorst’s diving header went over the bar and Christoph Baumgartner of Austria had a goal disallowed for offside, the world’s 25th-ranked team emerged victorious in Group D with six points, while the Netherlands advanced as one of the top three teams.
Austria coach Ralf Rangnick said: “We deserved to win in the end. Overall, we had the greater will to win and an extreme energy output on the pitch, which you could feel in every phase of the match.
“The way we reacted to the goals we conceded, that we didn’t bend, that we stayed true to our style of play and constantly kept seeking out our chances going forward.
“It’s incredible to finish top of a group that was the hardest possible based on UEFA coefficients.
“We started with an unlucky own goal against France, dealt with all the pressure put on us to win against Poland, and then to end as group winners is something very special.”
Netherlands boss Ronald Koeman said: “We started very badly in many aspects. There were many openings for the opponent. We were not aggressive and there was a lack of pressure on the opponents.
“It was very bad. We did not control the match early. Later on we performed slightly better and we had a few opportunities, but they punished us.”
“We have to take responsibility on the pitch; we’re not entitled to get a better result.
“We knew before the match that if we finish third we would get a big nation in the next round. We will wait and see what happens.”
In the round of sixteen, Austria will play the current runners-up of Group F, Turkey, while France will play the current runners-up of Group E, Belgium.
The opponents the Netherlands will face next are not yet known. They might play Spain, the winners of Group B, England, the winners of Group C, or Romania, the winners of Group E.
According to its rules, UEFA then assigns each country to a last-16 tie after determining the four best third-place teams.
Other posts by Hiresh
