England beware: Austria, the surprise package of Euro 2017, are determined to spoil the opening-night party at Old Trafford.
International tournaments are always better for the success of the host nation and one can write that either with or without bias as England start their home Women’s Euros campaign; the result is the same.
But if there is to be an opening night upset at a sold-out Old Trafford then perhaps we will all reflect that we should have seen it coming. Fool me once and all that.
Austria were the surprise package at the last European Championship five years ago, reaching the semi-finals on their major tournament debut. They topped a group that included pre-tournament favourites France, then knocked out Spain on penalties before only missing out on the final in a shootout themselves, against Denmark.
If their efforts stunned Europe’s heavyweights, they did likewise those watching on at home. There had been no grand plan or pledging of resources from the national FA to build a competitive women’s side, and the team was not blessed with big name stars: only one member of the squad played outside either the Austrian top flight or the Frauen-Bundesliga in neighbouring Germany (not then the continental force it is now), and that was for the Kansas Jayhawks, a US college team.
In Austria, the whole thing was greeted as a welcome fluke, the women’s team suddenly a source of national pride, with the men having flopped when touted as dark horses at Euro 2016 and about to fail in their quest to reach the 2018 World Cup (they still have not been to one since 1998).
On a broad scale, in Austria there is a feeling that the success has not been truly capitalised upon in the half-decade since: the domestic league has improved but only in line with the general trend across Europe and participation among women and girls at recreational level remains notably low.
The national team, however, has continued to progress. There has been a generational shift, with the likes of Nina Burger and Nadine Prohaska, boasting more than 200 caps between them, retiring in 2019, and there is a new head coach, too, Irene Fuhrmann replacing Dominik Thalhammer after three years as his assistant.
Thalhammer was a tinkerer, a tactical maverick renowned for his unpredictability, which stretched not merely to constant Gareth Southgate-esque debates over back-threes or back-fours, but occasionally even to the use of ancient formations like the WM or 2-3-5.
Fuhrmann, the first Austrian woman to gain UEFA’s Pro Licence, has been more consistent, relying on a 4-1-4-1 or 4-3-3 and building her side around an established spine.
Arsenal’s much improved goalkeeper Manuela Zinsberger starts between the posts, while Bayern Munich star Carina Wenninger - who has just joined Roma on loan at her own request - should be partnered at centre-back by Viktoria Schnaderbeck, finally over the injury hell that saw her make just 40 appearances in her own four-year spell at the Gunners.
Sarah Zadrazil, another Bayern star, is among the tournament’s leading midfield talents and Nicole Billa one of its most prolific forwards, having plundered 35 goals in the last two seasons for a Hoffenheim side who are trying, but not quite yet managing, to disrupt the German elite.
The consensus is that this team is markedly better than the one sent to the Netherlands five years ago. In a group with a stubborn Northern Ireland, a Norway buoyed by the return of Ada Hegerberg and of course, first up, the hosts, to reach the knockout stages, they may just have to surprise us all again.
