Coach urges Germany to be bold

GERMANY head coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg insists facing neighbours Austria in the quarter-final of the Euro 2022 has no impact on the occasion.

Eight-time winners Germany take on Austria at the Brentford Community Stadium tonight, aiming to improve upon their shock last-eight exit five years ago.

Having lifted the trophy on all but two of their previous appearances in the finals, Voss-Tecklenburg’s side will be the favourites to progress.

But while she has called on her players to show their courage against Austria, she stopped short of talking up the potential of the geography of the two nations impacting on the outcome.

“It makes no difference to us,” she said on the eve of the game.

“We could be facing

Norway, Sweden, Austria or the Netherlands, who are all neighbours of ours as well.

It’s a quarter-final at the Euro, and every opponent is deservedly here…it has no impact on us.

“We need to play our game. We can’t be afraid of failure, instead we need the courage to win and to show our quality. We have a big chance to reach the semi-finals, which wasn’t a given heading into this Euro.”

Austria are the lowestranked side left in the finals, having progressed from

Group A as runners-up to hosts England.

They made their tournament debut in 2017 and went all the way to the semifinals, losing to Denmark on penalties.

Head coach Irene

Fuhrmann was thrilled that Austria are once again mixing it with the top nations in Europe as she prepares her team for a tough challenge.

“It’s a sensation that we are among the top eight teams in Europe again,” she said.

“We have another chance to go up against one of the best teams in this tournament. Germany, like England, have proven how consistent they are. They haven’t yet conceded a goal – it will be an incredible challenge.

“We’re always very meticulous, both in the analysis of our opponent and of our own game.

“It’s a match which we are really looking forward to, because it’s new for us to play against Germany on such a big stage. I’m very excited to see what we will be able to do.”