Austria's U21 team fails because of inefficiency and referee errors

On the newly built Sport‑Club field in Vienna, the Austrian U21 team faced Denmark on Saturday in front of 2 674 vocal spectators. Despite a small theoretical chance for the ÖFB talents, the match remained a draw, and experts see the U‑21 Euro 2027 almost without Austria for the young national players.

Line‑up and missing leadership

The line‑up showed that Sattlberger, the long‑time captain, was not in the squad. Instead, Bajlicz and the only 17‑year‑old Weinhandl took central roles, while Wurmbrand only found a place on the bench.

Fidjeu‑Tazemeta, just taking off at Kaiserslautern, was given the wing in a 4‑2‑3‑1. Markovic, coming from the A‑team, won the ball in the 16th minute in the Danish penalty area, but Dursun from the Swiss champion Thun and Hödl both missed the chance.

Referee decisions and match flow

The pitch of the new stadium was shockingly poor, which further hampered the game. Referee Levy missed in the first half a goal‑denying foul on Dursun and a hand on the face of Zabransky, allowing the Danes to extend the 0:1 in the 50th minute.

After the halftime restart a clear goal was missing, although Dursun in the 42nd minute sent the ball towards the goal and goalkeeper Sander saved it. Further bad decisions followed, such as an overlooked head‑butt by Adejenughure in the 85th minute, while the Austrian team was only reinforced in the 67th minute with Wurmbrand.

Kojzek, Adewumi and Adejenughure were mentioned as possible turning points, but their actions remained unsuccessful. Weinhandl pulled back, Erik Kojzek from Partizan Belgrade attempted a fake in the 69th minute, and a shot from the Rapid player missed the goal in the 72nd minute. In the 98th minute Askou received a yellow‑red card, without another goal for Austria following.

If Austria secures a clear victory on Tuesday in Wales, it could still give hope, provided Belgium also defeats Denmark convincingly.