1-0 against Tunisia

Final World Cup warm-up LIVE: Austria vs. Tunisia

Austria defeated Tunisia 1-0 in their final friendly match before the World Cup.(Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH)

Austria passed its World Cup dress rehearsal against Tunisia with plenty of fight and a bit of luck! After a red card for Koni Laimer (37th minute), the ÖFB team played with a man down for a long time; Tunisia hit the woodwork three times and put goalie Alex Schlager under pressure on multiple occasions. Nevertheless, Rangnick’s squad ultimately won 1-0. Marcel Sabitzer scored the winning goal in the 63rd minute.

Austria’s national soccer team has pulled off a victorious World Cup dress rehearsal. On Monday, three days before departing for the U.S., the ÖFB squad celebrated a 1-0 victory over Tunisia in front of 35,100 spectators at Vienna’s Happel Stadium, thereby winning all three of its friendly matches this year. Marcel Sabitzer scored the winning goal in the 63rd minute; by that point, the Austrians were already playing a man down following a red card for Konrad Laimer (37th minute).

(Bild: GEPA)

Before kickoff, there had been bad news for the ÖFB team: Christoph Baumgartner felt a twinge in his thigh during warm-ups, and the exact extent of the injury was initially unclear. Michael Gregoritsch replaced the Leipzig pro in the starting lineup, which also included Marko Arnautovic and goalkeeper Alexander Schlager.

The hosts, who played with black armbands in memory of the late former national team goalkeeper Alexander Manninger, had their first shot on goal in the fourth minute. However, Tunisia’s goalkeeper Abdelmouhib Chamakh had no trouble stopping Marcel Sabitzer’s attempt.

Tunisians Hit the Woodwork Three Times
After that, the Austrians began to waver defensively and had the woodwork to thank on three separate occasions. Hannibal Mejbri curled a free kick from a tight angle onto the crossbar (12th minute), Firas Chaouat hit the post from close range (18th minute), and a 30-meter free kick by Anis Ben Slimane flew onto the crossbar (38th minute).

The decision to award the free kick had sparked controversy. Laimer, who was playing as a left back, prevented a golden opportunity for Chaouat with a handball and was initially shown a yellow card. After a VAR review, French referee Jeremie Pignard changed the decision to a red card. According to the ÖFB, however, Laimer’s sending-off will not result in a suspension for the World Cup.

ÖFB Team More Dangerous Down a Man
Substitutes included Carney Chukwuemeka and Sasa Kalajdzic. The latter received a pass from Schlager in the penalty area, but his shot narrowly missed the far post (48'). The Tunisians, who had mostly sat deep in the first half, took a few more risks with their numerical advantage, which opened up more space for the home side—this led to the ÖFB squad posing significantly more of a threat despite being a man down than they had before Laimer’s sending-off.

The result was Sabitzer’s 1-0 goal. After setups from Chukwuemeka and Stefan Posch, the Dortmund pro slotted the ball into the near post with a composed shot from inside the penalty area. Sabitzer scored his 26th goal in his 98th international match, tying him with Andreas Herzog and Matthias Sindelar for eighth place on the all-time ÖFB scoring list. It was also the Styrian’s third goal in his third ÖFB match this year.

Marcel Sabitzer scored to make it 1-0.(Bild: GEPA)

Three minutes later, the Austrians also hit the woodwork. Chamakh deflected a close-range shot by Marco Friedl onto the post, and Posch’s follow-up attempt hit the crossbar. After that, the Austrians retreated and did not allow the Tunisians any further significant chances to equalize. Sabitzer missed a chance to make it 2-0 in the 92nd minute when, under pressure, he couldn’t get the ball past Chamakh.

Now two days off for the ÖFB players
, Alaba, and the rest of the squad now have two daysoffbefore flying from Vienna to Los Angeles on Thursday and traveling from there to the team’s headquarters in Goleta near Santa Barbara. The first World Cup match takes place on June 17 (6:00 a.m. CEST) in Santa Clara against Jordan; no further friendly matches are scheduled before then.

Austria – Tunisia 1–0 (0–0)
Vienna, Ernst Happel Stadium, 35,100 spectators, Referee Pignard (FRA)

Goal: 1-0 (63') Sabitzer

Austria: A . Schlager – Posch (80. Prass), Lienhart (46. Danso), Alaba (46. Friedl), Laimer – Seiwald, X. Schlager (62. Wanner) – Schmid (46. Chukwuemeka), Gregoritsch (46. Mwene), Sabitzer – Arnautovic (46. Kalajdzic)

Tunisia: Chamakh – Valery, Talbi, Rekik, Abdi – Khedira (82. Saad), Skhiri – Ben Slimane (62. Ayari), Hannibal Mejbri (78. Hadj Mahmoud), Gharbi (62. Tounekti) – Chaouat (62. Elloumi)

Red card: Laimer (37th minute / Denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity)

Yellow cards: Danso and Gharbi