Rangnick drops Alaba, adds four new faces to Nations League squad

Austria’s national team manager Ralf Rangnick announced on Monday a 27‑man Nations League roster that omits club‑less captain David Alaba and introduces four fresh faces – goalkeeper Lukas Jungwirth, goalkeeper Christian Zawieschitzky, defender Felix Bacher and midfielder Vasilije Markovic – for the opening fixtures.

New faces in the squad

The four newcomers are listed as possible international debutants. Jungwirth and Zawieschitzky will sit on the bench as goalkeepers, while Bacher and Markovic have been called up as defender and midfielder respectively. Their inclusion marks the first time they have been named in the Austrian FA team’s senior squad.

Absent leaders and injury list

Alaba, the team captain, remains unavailable for the games against Israel, Ireland and Kosovo. Other senior figures also miss out, including Marko Arnautovic, Dejan Ljubicic and World Cup‑winner Marcel Sabitzer, who has taken a national‑team pause until the end of the year. Injuries have sidelined Michael Svoboda (knee) and Florian Grillitsch (adductors), while Christoph Baumgartner continues to recover.

Rangnick’s selection also brings back former regulars such as Maximilian Wöber, Junior Adamu and Marco Grüll, adding depth to the attacking line‑up. The goalkeeper quartet now includes World Cup‑experienced Alexander Schlager, Florian Wiegele and the standby Patrick Pentz.

APA/GEORG Hochmuth Vienna – Die Karten in the Austrian football‑nationalteam are being reshuffled as part of a broader Umbruch. The ÖFB‑Teamchef stresses that the new forces aim to revitalise the side ahead of the World Cup qualifying campaign.

Austria’s schedule begins on 24 September in Linz against Israel, followed three days later by a home match in Vienna versus Kosovo. The group stage continues with away games in Ireland on 1 October and Kosovo on 4 October, before concluding with a double‑header on 14 November in Linz against Ireland and on 17 November in Debrecen against Israel.

Es remains to be seen which of the debutants will seize their chance, but the Der team manager’s restructuring suggests a clear intent to blend experience with youthful energy for the upcoming Nations League matches.