UEFA Euro 2024 Pre-Quarter
July 3, 2024 - Indian Date
Leipzig Stadium
MATCH TIMES
India
12:30 AM
UAE
11:00 PM
Saudi Arabia
10:00 PM
FULL TIME
Austria possible starting lineup: Pentz; Posch, Danso, Lienhart, Mwene; Seiwald, Grillitsch; Schmid, Baumgartner, Sabitzer; Arnautovic
Turkey possible starting lineup: Gunok; Muldur, Demiral, Bardakci, Kadioglu; Yuksek, Yokuslu; Kahveci, Guler, Yildiz; Yilmaz
Match Preview
Austria and Turkey meet in Leipzig on Tuesday evening in the Euro 2024 last 16, with the winner securing a spot in the quarter-finals against either the Netherlands or Romania. This is the first major-tournament encounter between these two nations.
Austria, arriving in Germany as one of Europe’s form teams, topped Group D by defeating the Netherlands 3-2 in a thrilling match in Berlin. Ralf Rangnick's squad secured six points from a possible nine, finishing ahead of France, who drew 1-1 with already-eliminated Poland. Marcel Sabitzer's 80th-minute winner against the Netherlands secured Austria’s place at the top of the group after an initial defeat to France and a subsequent 3-1 victory over Poland.
This success marks a significant achievement for Austria, who failed to progress beyond the group stage in their previous two Euros appearances in 2008 and 2016. The team has only reached the knockout phase of a major tournament four times: the 1934 and 1954 World Cups, Euro 2020, and now Euro 2024. Rangnick's high-energy team, having won 14 of their last 19 matches, aim to reach their first European Championship quarter-final.
Austria has a notable win percentage under Rangnick, who took charge in June 2022, with victories over Portugal, Netherlands, and Spain. They recently dominated Turkey 6-1 in a friendly in Vienna, with Michael Gregoritsch scoring a hat-trick.
In competitive play, however, Turkey is unbeaten in their last five games against Austria, keeping clean sheets in each, though their last competitive match was a 0-0 draw during Euro 2012 qualifying. Turkey reached the last 16 by defeating the Czech Republic 2-1 in a dramatic final Group F game, with veteran striker Cenk Tosun scoring in stoppage time. This followed a 3-1 win over Georgia and a 3-0 loss to Portugal.
Turkey, under Vincenzo Montella, boasts a youthful squad, the second-youngest on average in the group stage, and has reached the latter stages of the Euros for only the third time, with the previous instance being in 2008 when they reached the semi-finals. Despite Austria’s proximity to the host nation, Turkey is expected to have significant fan support in Germany, where many Turkish emigrants have settled over the past 60 years.