Austria captain Andreas Ivanschitz has called on his team to continue the progress they have made at UEFA EURO 2008™ and deliver a knockout blow to Germany in Vienna.

Hero status
It is a meeting that has gripped the co-host nation and provided the excuse to dust down memories of previous triumphs over their neighbours. Ivanschitz labelled it a “special match, a decisive match” and one that offers the chance for all of Josef Hickersberger’s players to become heroes. “It was important for us to draw against Poland as it gives us the opportunity to make it through to the quarter-finals,” said the 24-year-old Panathinaikos FC midfielder. “It makes it all the more interesting and for both sides it is a key match.”

Win or bust
To achieve a place in the last eight in their first appearance in the UEFA European Championship, Austria need to win and hope that Poland do not defeat Croatia by a bigger margin while a draw would be enough for Germany to progress behind Croatia, the group winners. Ivanschitz was asked whether the chance to deliver a result that would be talked about in the country for years to come has made him especially nervous.

Nervous feelings
“I’ll see how well I am going to sleep tonight,” he began. “Of course the nerves have already been there for some days. We have a unique opportunity in such a big tournament to beat Germany. It is not going to be easy, we are the outsiders, but we have given evidence that we are good enough to play against good teams and we now have to confirm that the team is good and in a good shape.”

Thirty years on from Austrian football’s most famous day Josef Hickersberger has history on his side when his team meet Germany in Vienna for a place in the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals, although the coach is looking elsewhere for inspiration.

Vienna memories
A 3-2 win in Cordoba in the 1978 FIFA World Cup knocked out then holders West Germany, Austria’s sole victory in ten competitive fixtures against West and the unified Germany. Much has been made of that triumph – in which Hickersberger played – in the build-up to a game that will decide second place in Group B, yet the coach said: “Too much has been said about Cordoba. For me, history is repeating itself. In 1989, we played the German Democratic Republic in Vienna in a decisive qualifier for the 1990 World Cup and won [3-0]. The names are different now, but we’re looking forward to the match.”

‘Alles oder nichts’
The front cover of the Kurier newspaper’s magazine supplement bears the simple headline “Alles oder nichts”, and for Austria the equation is equally straightforward: win or join co-hosts Switzerland in making an early exit from their own party. With the Austrians having lost 3-0 to Germany in February and being without a win against these opponents since 1986, that may look a tall order but Hickersberger is full of confidence. “We’re in excellent shape,” he said. “We’re better than we were in February and we have a decent chance. This is the biggest match of my life and it will be the biggest match of all time if we win.”

Crucial point
Ivica Vastic’s added-time penalty snatched a draw against Poland on Thursday, when Germany lost 2-1 to Croatia, and the Austria coach – missing only the suspended Sebastian Prödl – has seen enough in the first two games to be optimistic. “Germany weren’t that good against Croatia and they have problems. One or two players are injured, they’re not playing that well and we have home advantage. I’d put our chances at 40 per cent – people might think I’m pessimistic but that’s quite good. The important thing is we have a chance and if you’d told me that a year ago I’d have been more than grateful.”

‘Push the limit’
Germany coach Joachim Löw has encouraged his players to “avoid pointing the finger at each other” since that defeat by Croatia and is anticipating a positive reaction. “I promise you the team will play differently,” he said. “Thirty million people will be watching in Germany and we have to win for them and for our nation. The match against Croatia is a thing of the past. We’ll have to push to the limit because Austria have improved in the last few weeks and months. They’re a team of fighters but we will go the extra mile.”

Trio available
Marcell Jansen misses out with a shoulder problem while Bastian Schweinsteiger is suspended following his red card on Thursday, although top scorer Lukas Podolski (foot), Philipp Lahm (calf and shin) and Heiko Westermann (hand) are all poised to play, with the last-mentioned wearing a protective cast. Löw believes his side will meet expectations, adding: “A little pressure doesn’t hurt – my team will deal with that. If we play well, there’s no need to be afraid of our opponents. We’ll play our game, impose our style and show what we can do.”

Striker Marek Saganowski says coach Leo Beenhakker has a battle on his hands to raise Poland’s players for their Group B finale against Croatia after a disappointing finish against Austria.

Bleak
Poland endured serious pressure from Austria in the first 20 minutes in Vienna, with goalkeeper Artur Boruc making a number of saves to deny Josef Hickersberger’s side, before the game turned in Poland’s favour when Roger Guerreiro scored on 30 minutes. However, a stoppage-time penalty from Ivica Vastic earned the co-hosts a 1-1 draw and Poland now have a major battle on their hands to make the last 16. Leo Beenhakker’s team have one group match left, against Croatia in Klagenfurt on Monday, but Southampton FC forward Saganowski admits the mood in the camp is bleak.

Low morale
“It will be very hard to lift morale and confidence after what’s happened,” Saganowski told euro2008.com. “It will be difficult to make the quarter-finals now. We have to play Croatia and they will be high on confidence after beating Germany [2-1 to qualify for the quarter-finals as group winners]. It should be a good game but a very hard game for us. It is difficult to accept drawing a game this way. The UEFA European Championship is a big moment for the Polish nation and for the players who are here, and it’s a pity to finish the game with a penalty so late in the match. If Austria had scored in the first half when they had chances, it would have been fair enough, but it is hard to take when they score a goal in the way and at the time they did.”

In vain
The 29-year-old English-based attacker was one of three changes to the starting XI from Poland’s 2-0 opening defeat by Germany, and Saganowski contributed with the cross that set up Roger’s goal. “It was nice to play a part in the goal but it means nothing as we did not win,” he added. Poland captain Jacek Bąk sounded similarly disconsolate: “We drew the game and got a point but it feels like a defeat. We were in the lead for so long and were on our way to winning the game and giving ourselves a good chance of making the next stage, but now it’s going to be very difficult. We had a big chance to do well and go into the Croatia game with confidence, but now our confidence will be low and we have to work hard in training to get ready for Croatia.”

The disappointment following the 2-1 loss against Croatia was still etched on the face of Joachim Löw as he addressed the media today. The 48-year-old seemed very tense, perhaps the pressure of expectation weighing on his mind ahead of Germany’s encounter against their neighbours in what is sure to be an emotional night at a sold-out Ernst-Happel-Stadion against co-hosts Austria.

High expectations
After his team struggled to cope with a lively Croatian side in Klagenfurt yesterday, Löw will be asking himself if his players can handle such an all-or-nothing match such as the one which now awaits the Mannschaft. The whole country expects the team to make amends for the loss against Croatia, while the whole of Austria, given hope after the draw with Poland, are hoping for a surprise victory over Löw’s title favourites.

Strong nerves needed
Defender Philipp Lahm expressed his confidence that he and his team-mates are focused enough to see off Asutria and claim the win they need. But is he being overly optimistic? Captain Michael Ballack has not yet been able to reach his usual high standards. The German rearguard looked particularly unstable against Croatia, while in attack, only Lukas Podolski, with three goals in two games so far, seems the only threat. Can the Germans cope with the white-hot atmosphere which is waiting for them in Vienna.

Ivica Vastic’s last-gasp penalty kept Austria in contention to reach the UEFA EURO 2008™ quarter-finals, salvaging a draw against a Poland side who had looked set to take three points thanks to Roger Guerreiro’s first-half goal and some inspired goalkeeping from Artur Boruc.

Late drama
Boruc made four crucial interventions to frustrate a vibrant Austria before Roger was in the right place to tap in on the half-hour and give Poland the lead. Austria were staring a second successive 1-0 defeat in the face but, three minutes into added time, Marcin Wasilewski pulled Sebastian Prödl’s shirt and substitute Vastic became the oldest player to score in a UEFA European Championship, finally beating Boruc from the spot. These teams now have one point apiece, two fewer than Germany who are Austria’s final opponents on Monday, when Group B winners Croatia are the opposition for Poland.

Austria domination
With both sides having lost already, each knew another reverse would almost certainly end their championship hopes and, buoyed by deafening support, it was Austria who dominated much of the first half. Andreas Ivanschitz set the tone, dragging a hopeful shot wide before testing Boruc with a long-range free-kick. Then came the onslaught. Martin Harnik raced on to a lofted Ümit Korkmaz pass only for his strike to be turned wide by Boruc and, moments later, the Werder Bremen midfielder was again denied after Korkmaz set him up from the byline, having tricked his way past two defenders. Harnik shot from eight metres but Boruc was there again.

Boruc heroics
But for the Celtic FC goalkeeper, Austria would have been out of sight within the first 15 minutes. It was at that point that Boruc was called upon to make his fourth save of the evening as Christoph Leitgeb was put clean through. Like Harnik before him, Leitgeb opted against rounding the keeper and let fly early. Boruc bravely stopped the shot and was alert enough to kick away the loose ball too.

Disbelief
Poland had hardly threatened but somehow, completely against the run of play, Leo Beenhakker’s men went in front in the 30th minute. Euzebiusz Smolarek’s left-wing cross was controlled by Marek Saganowski at the far post and, though his strike was blocked by Emanuel Pogatetz, the ball rolled across goal for Roger to gleefully turn it into an unguarded net. Even Austria coach Josef Hickersberger cracked a rueful smile of disbelief as suddenly a cry of “Polska, Polska” reverberated around the ground.

Macho saves
Beenhakker’s half-time team talk must have been impassioned as Poland emerged after the break with greater attacking intent. Smolarek spurned the opportunity to double the advantage after cutting in from the left and forcing a stop from Jürgen Macho with an angled drive, while Dariusz Dudka was afforded the time to bring down Roger’s cross and make Macho parry at his near post. Poland were now in the ascendancy and, midway through the half, Macho had to be at his best to tip Jacek Krzynówek’s ferocious free-kick over the bar.

Vastic composure
Austria strove manfully to find an equaliser, with Hickersberger throwing on Roman Kienast, Vastic and Jürgen Säumel as the clock ticked down. Säumel and Prödl both sent efforts too high and it seemed there would be no beating Boruc – until Prödl won the penalty and the 38-year-old Vastic did the rest.

After watching Ivica Vastic drill in an added-time penalty to secure Austria’s first-ever UEFA European Championship point, Josef Hickersberger said he was “99.9 per cent certain” that the 38-year-old would wipe out Poland’s 1-0 lead. The striker became the oldest scorer in the history of the finals at the Ernst-Happel-Stadion, keeping the co-hosts alive in the process. Leo Beenhakker said Poland were “probably out of the tournament” but both sides could qualify for the quarter-finals by winning their final matches on Monday.

Josef Hickersberger, Austria coach
We’re all very happy that we finally managed to get the point. My team played very well, the way we intended to play. We wanted to show that we were courageous, full of energy, and that we wanted to dominate the match. We had three clear chances and should have taken the lead but unfortunately we didn’t. And, as often happens in football, we then fell behind. In the second half we were as strong as in the first but we couldn’t score, so I tried to bring on some substitutes to change things. We didn’t do it the way we wanted to, we didn’t want to score in that way really. But it’s Austria’s first-ever point in the EURO and we are pleased to have got it. We hadn’t decided that Ivica Vastic would be our penalty taker in advance but when it was awarded, it was clear that Vastic would assume the responsibility because he is the most experienced player in the team. He has played in big tournaments – he was at the 1998 [FIFA] World Cup in France – and I was 99.9 per cent certain that he would score.

Leo Beenhakker, Poland coach
If you lose 2-0, like we did against Germany, then it’s difficult to take but you can accept it; to suffer in this way is very tough to take. The only thing you can recognise is that you don’t always get what you deserve in this game. Apart from the first 21 minutes, when our players seemed to have fallen asleep, we played a great game. My players woke up after a slow start. Then we scored a goal and we deserved to win. I still feel very bad. It was the only chance to survive and stay in the tournament. I understand that Austria are excited about the result but for the moment I feel very different. I think we are very probably out of the tournament and that hurts a lot. We know we have much to learn in this tournament and that there are a lot of areas where we can improve, but this hurts a lot and it was unnecessary.