Underestimate Austria at your peril

Austria underestimated
The 22-year-old reckons that Germany, Poland and Sunday's opening opponents Croatia could be in for a surprise when they meet Austria in Vienna. "Everybody is underestimating us and we will strike like a bomb," he said. It is a view shared by his midfield colleague Christoph Leitgeb, who added: "The chances of us reaching the quarter-finals are high. Croatia have weaknesses in defence, which we have to take advantage of."

Frankfurt move
Korkmaz captured the headlines on Thursday with his transfer from SK Rapid Wien to Eintracht Frankfurt. He went on to explain why he had decided to agree a move on the eve of his national team's greatest test in years. "I didn't want to wait any longer," he said. "Frankfurt is the right choice for me because it's a young team and I feel that I will fit in there very well."

Issues resolved
Austria coach Josef Hickersberger had hinted at disciplinary problems in the camp when he spoke to the media on Wednesday but team manager Andreas Herzog said the issues had now been resolved. "There were two or three minor things which did not fit into the coach's system," Herzog said. "He talked to the team about them and the issue is over."

Extra rest
So now Austria can concentrate on Sunday's big game. "The first game of the tournament is the most important," said Herzog, Austria's most-capped player. "We can only get by Croatia by giving 100 per cent. But our players are very well prepared and have justifiable hopes that we can beat Croatia." To that end the afternoon training session was cancelled to give the players time to gather their strength. "The players need to be fresh on Sunday," Herzog added.