Austria and Turkey share a curious recent history. In late March 2024, the Austrians humbled the Crescent-Stars 6-1 in Vienna. Three months later, both nations arrived in Germany for EURO 2024, and their last-16 pairing promised a very different contest. Line-ups can reveal how each coach has reacted to those very different nights: Ralf Rangnick sticking to his energetic principles, Vincenzo Montella juggling youth, injuries, and suspensions.
A quick rewind: the March 2024 friendly
Austria (4-2-3-1)
Schlager (GK); Posch, Danso, Wöber, Mwene; Laimer, X. Schlager; Wimmer, Baumgartner, R. Schmid; Gregoritsch.
Turkey (4-2-3-1)
Çakır (GK); Ayhan, Demiral, Müldür, Özkaçar; Çalhanoğlu, Yüksek; Kahveci, Kökçü, Aktürkoğlu; Yıldız.
That night Austria pressed high, scored in the second minute, and never eased off. Turkey’s back line looked exposed, especially once Hakan Çalhanoğlu had to drop deep to help build play. The scorers may be history now, but the personnel list is still useful: nine of Austria’s starters and eight of Turkey’s are in the current squads, so lessons were learned rather than ripped up.
Formations for the EURO showdown
Both coaches have settled on broadly similar shapes:
| Team | Shape | Key traits | Big absences |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | 4-2-3-1 (can slide to 4-4-2 when pressing) | Relentless running, wide full-backs, Sabitzer roaming between the lines | None through injury; winger Patrick Wimmer suspended |
| Turkey | 4-2-3-1 (tilts to 4-3-3 in possession) | Young attacking trio behind a classic No 9, full-backs push high, midfield shields must work hard | Çalhanoğlu (susp.), Akaydın (susp.) |
Sources: detailed team-news notes from Sports Mole and 90min.
Expected starting XI – Austria
| Position | Player (club) | Why he starts |
|---|---|---|
| GK | Patrick Pentz (Brøndby) | Rangnick prefers his calm distribution over Schlager’s shot-stopping heroics. |
| RB | Stefan Posch (Bologna) | Dependable one-v-one defender; scored vs. Netherlands earlier in the group. |
| CBs | Philipp Lienhart (Freiburg) & Gernot Trauner (Feyenoord) | Aerial strength plus the ability to step into midfield with the ball. |
| LB | Philipp Mwene (Mainz) | Naturally right-footed but overlaps on either side and crosses early. |
| CM double pivot | Nicolas Seiwald (RB Leipzig) & Florian Grillitsch (Hoffenheim) | One stays, one roams; both press without blinking. |
| RW | Romano Schmid (Werder Bremen) | Earned his place with a goal and assist vs. Netherlands. |
| No 10 | Marcel Sabitzer (Dortmund) | Captain in all but name, drifts wide to drag markers out and shoot late. |
| LW | Christoph Baumgartner (RB Leipzig) | Arrives late in the box, smart connection with Sabitzer. |
| CF | Marko Arnautović (Inter) | Veteran presence, still happiest bullying centre-backs and laying off to runners. |
Most alternative debates centre on centre-back Kevin Danso, who could edge Trauner, and striker Michael Gregoritsch, whose hat-trick in March proved he can light up this fixture from the bench.
Expected starting XI – Turkey
| Position | Player (club) | Why he starts |
|---|---|---|
| GK | Mert Günok (Beşiktaş) | Fit again after a knee niggle, trusted organiser who loves the big occasion. |
| RB | Mert Müldür (Fenerbahçe) | Vienna-born and eager to silence the home crowd; strong throw-ins too. |
| CBs | Merih Demiral (Al-Ahli) & Abdülkerim Bardakcı (Galatasaray) | Demiral brings aggression, Bardakcı left-foot balance. |
| LB | Ferdi Kadıoğlu (Fenerbahçe) | Ten open-play chances created in the group stage—the tournament’s best at left-back. |
| CM shield | İsmail Yüksek (Fenerbahçe) & Salih Özcan (Dortmund) | Ball-winners protecting the teenage artists up front. |
| RW | Kerem Aktürkoğlu (Galatasaray) | Direct runner, isolates the full-back for one-on-ones. |
| No 10 | Arda Güler (Real Madrid) | Vision, deft first touch, and long-range shooting—already a national treasure at 19. |
| LW | Kenan Yıldız (Juventus) | Another teenager, floats inside to create space for Kadıoğlu on the overlap. |
| CF | Burak Yılmaz (Lille) | Old-fashioned target man tasked with dragging Lienhart out of shape. |
Suspensions hurt: with Çalhanoğlu missing, Montella may drop Özcan deeper and add Okay Yokuşlu for extra steel if Austria take early control.
Substitutes who could swing the contest
| Nation | First option | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Austria | Michael Gregoritsch | Six goals in his last six caps; punishes tired defences with late back-post runs. |
| Austria | Konrad Laimer | If behind, he replaces a pivot and turns the press up to maximum. |
| Turkey | Cenk Tosun | Proved vs. Czechia that he still has a poacher’s touch; excels in penalty-box chaos. |
| Turkey | Okay Yokuşlu | Adds height and heading ability at both ends, handy if Austria rely on set pieces. |
How the tactical chess could unfold
- Press versus counter
Rangnick’s Austria press high and invite risky passes in the Turkish half. Turkey usually accept that invitation, looking to release Güler or Yıldız into space as soon as they beat the first wave. Whoever wins that duel may dictate the evening. - The full-back duel
Kadıoğlu will bomb forward; if Posch pins him back by overlapping with Schmid, Austria can overload Turkey’s right side. Flip that, and Turkey’s left back can double up with Yıldız and stretch the Austrian rear-guard. - Midfield brains
Without Çalhanoğlu, Turkey lose their calm passer. Yüksek does the dirty work but not the creative sparks. Austria’s Seiwald-Grillitsch pairing is steady rather than spectacular, so Sabitzer’s drifting could be decisive: he finds the half-spaces that pull Özcan away from his station. - Set piece threat
Demiral and Bardakcı are powerful in the air, but so are Danso (if selected) and Trauner. Austria scored from corners in both group wins, while Turkey conceded twice from dead-ball deliveries in theirs. One well-delivered free-kick might tilt momentum.
Lessons from that 6-1 thrashing
- Austria’s quick starts: Xaver Schlager netted after two minutes in Vienna. Expect Austria to press from the first whistle again.
- Turkey’s defensive width: Wide gaps appeared between full-back and centre-back. Montella’s choice of Bardakcı over the slower Özkaçar signals an attempt to fix that flaw.
- Psychology: Austria know they can hurt Turkey; Turkey know they owe their supporters a response. Expect a fiery opening quarter-hour but also greater discipline—eight Turkish players are one booking from another suspension.
Predicted benches (selected names)
| Austria | Turkey |
|---|---|
| A. Schlager (GK) | Altay Bayındır (GK) |
| Kevin Danso | Zeki Çelik |
| Max Wöber | Cenk Özkaçar |
| Konrad Laimer | Okay Yokuşlu |
| Alexander Prass | Orkun Kökçü |
| Patrick Wimmer* | Kerem Aktürkoğlu (if he starts, Yasin Öztekin may come in) |
| Michael Gregoritsch | Cenk Tosun |
*Wimmer is suspended for this tie but would return for any quarter-final.
Big questions still unanswered
- Who partners Lienhart?
Trauner offers calm distribution; Danso brings athletic recovery runs. Rangnick may choose depending on whether he fears Yıldız’s pace more than Yılmaz’s physicality. - Can Turkey replace Çalhanoğlu’s brain?
Özcan can protect space but rarely splits lines. Montella might push Güler deeper in phases, effectively using a 4-3-3 in build-up. - Will Austria rotate late?
Rangnick’s substitutions often arrive before 70 minutes to keep energy high. If Gregoritsch and Laimer appear together, Austria can switch to a 4-4-2 press that suffocated the Netherlands. - Is Günok fit enough?
One agile dive against Czechia suggests yes, but Austria’s aerial bombardment will test his knee again.
Final thought
Both coaches trust systems more than star power. Austria rely on collective pressing and quick vertical passes; Turkey lean on youthful flair backed by hardened defenders. The line-ups above show two groups that mirror each other numerically yet contrast in rhythm: Austria relentless, Turkey elastic.
Whatever the score, the chess board is set. The names on the teamsheets tell a story of lessons learned since that lopsided evening in Vienna and set the stage for a contest where every duel, from full-back overlaps to teenage dribbles, could swing the fate of a quarter-final ticket.
Enjoy the clash—and keep an eye on those benches; the next hero may well start in a tracksuit.
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