MX23RW : Thursday, March 20 09:49:23| >> :600:92285:92285:

Franco Foda urges Austria to make history in North Macedonia clash

Franco Foda urges Austria to make history in North Macedonia clash
© Reuters
The Austrians are preparing for their third European Championship campaign but have yet to win a match in the finals.

Austria coach Franco Foda has urged his players to make history in their Euro 2020 opener against tournament debutants North Macedonia.

The Austrians are preparing for their third European Championship campaign but have yet to taste victory in the competition.

They qualified for Euro 2008 as hosts and later travelled to Euro 2016, picking up just a solitary point on each occasion as they exited following the group stages.

German boss Foda, whose players were unable to train at the National Arena in Bucharest on the eve of their Group C opener after heavy rain caused a waterlogged pitch, is targeting a milestone moment followed by a maiden appearance in the knockout rounds.

"I don't feel any pressure; on the contrary, I told everyone, the players, the coaches and staff that we can make history tomorrow," he told a press conference.

"That's our goal: to win our first Euro game and then we can see how things develop and what further goals we can define.

"The atmosphere is very good in the squad, there's a lot of excitement. We've had to wait a year for this because of the pandemic.

"We have set a very clear goal. The group is very evenly balanced, everything is possible. Especially in a Euro like this, anything can happen. We want to do everything we can to reach the knockouts."

North Macedonia are also seeking a maiden Euros victory, albeit in their first outing at the finals.

Austria won home and away against their opponents during qualifying for the tournament but North Macedonia coach Igor Angelovski believes his side will be a tougher proposition on this occasion.

"I think that many things have changed since those two matches, because they were played two years ago," he said.

"And during those two years our national team has grown from one match to the next and played better football, the players have made progress in each match, and this is completely different from the qualifiers."

ID:451145:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect2956:
Written by
P A

Click here for more stories about Franco Foda

Click here for more stories about Austria

Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Austria's Christoph Baumgartner celebrates scoring their second goal with teammates on March 28, 2021
Read Next:
Austria Euro 2020 preview - prediction, fixtures, squad, star player
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free daily transfer newsletter! Sent twice a day during the transfer window.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool29217169274270
2Arsenal291610353242958
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest29166749351454
4Chelsea29147853371649
5Manchester CityMan City29146955401548
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle2814594738947
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton29121164842647
8Fulham2912984338545
9Aston Villa2912984145-445
10Bournemouth29128948361244
11Brentford29125125045541
12Crystal Palace2810993633339
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd29107123740-337
14Tottenham HotspurSpurs291041555431234
15Everton2971393236-434
16West Ham UnitedWest Ham2997133349-1634
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2975174058-1826
18Ipswich TownIpswich2938182862-3417
19Leicester CityLeicester2945202565-4017
20Southampton2923242170-499


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!