Austria and Moldova will face each other in a friendly before their respective Euro 2024 qualifying games. The hosts are undefeated in six games. Moldova is back in action with a winning attitude after defeating Poland most recently.
Preview (Austria vs. Moldova)
It was a rocky start with just one win, one draw, and four losses in his first six matches as manager. Former Manchester United manager Ralf Rangnick now seems to be settling in. Austria has started a promising streak of form since losing 3-1 to Croatia in September 2022. Rangnick’s team started their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with home victories over Azerbaijan and Estonia. They picked up a point on their away trip to Belgium. They had previously defeated Andorra and Italy in friendly matches.
Christoph Baumgartner’s two late goals helped Austria defeat Sweden 2-0 in their most recent match. It ensured that they finished the June international period in the first place. Austria will be looking ahead to their Euro 2024 qualifying encounter against Sweden on Tuesday. They will also be hoping for a win on Thursday to extend their unbeaten streak to seven games. During the previous international break in June, Moldova, meanwhile, achieved their first victory since September 2022 when they pulled off an incredible comeback to defeat Poland 3-2.
After trailing by two goals at the half, Moldova made an incredible comeback in the second half. Ion Nicolaescu scored twice to tie the game for his nation. Vladislav Baboglo scored the game-winning goal in the 85th minute. The Moldovans are in third place in Group E after collecting five points from their four qualifying matches. They are one point behind second-placed Albania, who have a game in hand over Serghei Clescenco’s team.
Team news
Ragnick might be tempted to rest important players, such as captain David Alaba and RB Leipzig’s Baumgartner, in order to prepare for Tuesday’s qualifying match against Sweden. Philipp Lienhart of Freiburg is anticipated to start the friendly on Thursday, while Kevin Danso might line up with him in the center of defense. The hosts are expected to start Michael Gregoritsch up front, a teammate from Lienhart’s club, and the 29-year-old will be hoping to keep up his impressive international form after scoring in three of his past four outings for his nation. The visitors have selected a 25-man roster that includes 12 players who now play club football in either Moldova or the neighboring country of Romania.
Clescenco will probably distribute the playing time among his team in Thursday’s friendly because Moldova will play the Faroe Islands in European Championship qualifying on Sunday. Nicolaescu, a striker for Heerenveen, is the greatest goal danger for the opposition after scoring 12 goals in 34 appearances for his country. We believe that Austria, who is in good form heading into the friendly on Thursday, will prove to be far too powerful for their lower-ranked opponents.
Austria 2 – 0 Moldova
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