Euro 2008 LIVEBLOG: Austria vs Germany

GROUP B	June 16th, 2045 CET, Vienna (Austria)
Austria 0 VS Germany 1   Ballack 48′

90+4 And that’s the game. Germany goes through after rather unimaginative play. They’ll play Portugal in the quarters. That will be an interesting matchup.

90+3 Borowski on, Fritz off for Germany. Let’s waste some time and give the guy a cap. Cross from Germany, Metzelder heads it out for a corner. Ivanschitz delivers, but Germany sends it down the field. Garics sends it in to Lehmann. And then immediately on the counter, Neuville gets free and Austria has to scramble. In the end the defenders are able to make Neuville send his shot wide.

90+1 I think I heard three minutes of stoppage time. Germany has had more possession in the last five minutes than in the whole second half. Frings takes a long shot from outside the box, and it goes wide.

89′ Germany goes on the attack one last time. Neuville and Klose do some pretty one-touch play and get a shot off, but Macho bats it away and Austria is eventually able to clear.

88′ Saumel sends off a half-hearted shot straight to Lehmann.

86′ Germany is defending with everything they have. Austria is attacking with all they have, but it’s not going to be enough. Barring a miracle.

85′ Ivanschitz sends the ball up to Garics on the right. Garics keeps it from going over the byline and delivers a semi-shot at an impossible angle and straight to Lehmann.

84′ Hoffer somehow gets a shot off in a box loaded with white shirts, but he can’t get on target and it goes wide for a goal kick.

83′ Podolski off, Neuville on for Germany. Podolski almost missed this game with an ankle injury, so they’re probably wanting to protect him.

82′ Ivanschitz charages through German defenders. Lahm just barely gets there in time and sends it out for a corner. Germany clears the corner away fairly easily.

81′ A nice cross from Garics that Germany heads out. Germany is defending well.

80′ Macho looks shaken up, but he’s still in. Germany takes the corner. It deflect off of Garics and Macho has to grab it to prevent an own goal.

79′ Klose gets an opportunity. He’s going forward, Macho dives for the ball. In the end, Macho is lying on the ground and Klose is limping.

78′ Germany is doing the bare minimum to get through.

77′ Long Austrian ball, and Lehmann has to charge off his line.

76′ Korkmaz gets a shot, but it goes out for a goal kick. Poor finishing is going to finish off Austria. Too bad, becasue they’re not a bad side.

75′ Leitgeb takes a shot that goes high. Must have been deflected, because it’s a corner. Germany sends it down the field, but to an Austrian player. But Germany eventually gets it back.

73′ Corner for Austria. Kienast gets a body part to it, but it goes over, but with a deflection, so anothe corner. This one looks threatening, but Lehmann is tangling it up with Austria and the ref blows the whistle. Possession Germany. On the other end, Klose gets a chance, but nothing happens.

71′ Free kick for Austris maybe twenty yards out of the box. It’s sent right into the wall, but Austria gets it back. They get an opportunity but send it out for a goal kick.

70′ Ballack sends a nice ball up to Podolski. Podolski gets tackled. Hitzlsperger is there to clean up, and he takes the ball and sends off a shot that’s off target.

Here’s the Ballack free kick goal:

68′ Germany gets a chance — I missed most of it because I was typing, but Germany was offside. And then on the counter, Kienast has a great chance, but Mertesacker is able to alter the trajectory of the ball so Kienast can’t volley it into the goal.

66′ Klose is in the box and almost gets a shot, but Pogatetz gives a perfect tackle and sends it out for a corner. Well done — ther was nobody else nearby. Kienast is in, Harnik out for Austria. Frings sends in a beautiful corner that Macho has to punch away.

64′ Korkmaz has a nice run up the left, dodges defenders to get to the middle, sends in a shot into a German defender. Austria has suddenly realized they need to play with urgency.

62′ Something going on with Lehmann. He’s fixing his boot, and there’s a German team guy there with him. Equipment problems? Injury? Whatever, he’s apparently good to go and takes the goal kick. Aufhaused is off, Saumel on for Austria.

61′ Pogatetz is lucky not to see yellow. He’s not happy that the linesman called a German throw-in and bites the ball. Yes, bites. Then hurls it away.

– Gomez had his chance, and now it’s over. He’s off, Hitzlsperger on for Germany.

60′ Ivanschitz sends off a shot that goes to Lehmann

59′ Korkmaz charges up the left, but Friedrichs is able to shut him down before he can cross it.

57′ Korkmaz has to take down Klose by the touchline to shut him down. Austria has committed 17 fould vs. 6 for Germany. Podolski takes the free kick. Fuchs heads it up and Macho grabs it.

55′ Garics sends in a long shot and Lehmann finally has to come off his line and grab the ball.

54′ Podolski sends off a hard left-footed shot that goes just wide for a goal kick. Hiden off, Leitgeb on for Austria.

53′ Ivanshitz is able to get a shot off, but it goes into a German belly.

52′ Germany seems to have come alive. Lahm comes up the left carries it to the middle and shoots wide. Nice opportunity.

51′ And now Austria needs to come alive and start putting chances away.

48′ GOAL!!!! BALLACK!!!Ivanschitz takes down Lahm, kind of going straight through his legs. He gets yellow for the effort. First direct free kick for Germany in the game. Ballack sends in an absolutelly gorgeous missile of a free kick around the wall and into the upper-right corner of the goal. That was unstoppable. Beautiful. (And I’m a neutral.)

47′ gomez has a chance, but he gets shut down so he sends it to Fritz on the right. Fuchs manages to fake Fritz out and gets the goal kick.

46′ And we’re off. Let’s hope for more excitement. Hoffer has a promising foray into the German box, but then he kind of froze and gave up the ball. And the coaches were sent off for “constant bickering.” Um…yeah.

45+2 And that’s the half. Nil-nil. If this continues, Germany goes through. They seem to be counting on Austria’s inability to finish. Interesting strategy.

45+1 I take that back. Austria looked threatening for a second. Fuchs takes it up the left and sends in a cross. He has three heads to aim for, but Germany gets it back instead.

45′ We’re just killing time till the half is over. Two minutes of stoppage time.

44′ Frings sends in a hopeful ball toward goal. Nobody there and Macho isn’t troubled as it flies far to the left of the goal.

43′ I really expected a more exciting game here.

42′ This refereeing is bizarre. Jogi Low is now with the German prime minister in the stands. And I guess there is still a game going on. Fritz is taken down and sandwiched by Stranzl. A blow to the back of the neck that looked like it hurt.

41′ Korkmaz sends in a long, hard shot that goes high. The ref and the coaches are having some discussion. Did somebody just get ejected? It looks like BOTH coaches have been sent off!

39′ “I just think this referee… He’s a little too fussy for me.” Insert Scottish accent and you have a quote from Andy Gray.

38′ Austrian corner goes to nobody and out of the box, but Garics gets to it and tries to send off a shot, but it goes into a German defender. And before too long Austria gets another chance, but Ballack clears it.

Here’s the video of that Gomez missed sitter. ouch!!

37′ On the other end, Lahm sends in a cross/shot straight to Macho. There were no German players in the vicinity.

36′ The ball is moving end to end, with both teams occasionally looking threatening. Fuchs gets a head on a cross, but sends it high and wide.

34′ Long ball for Austria toward Hoffer in the German box, but Metzelder sheilds him and keeps him from the ball. The whistle blows on Hoffer. ?!?

33′ Fritz comes up the right. His cross is deflected for a corner. Frings takes it and sends it into the box. Klose gets a head to it, but there’s no power on it and it goes wide.

32′ Lahm sends in a header for Gomez, but he’s offside.

30′ Germany gets a chance and takes it up the middle. Gomez has the final possession, but Pogatetz shields it out, but it’s called for a German corner. Ballack gets close to the delivery, but Macho is able to punch it away. Hoffer gets yellow for taking down Ballack at the ankles.

29′ Austria gets some possession in the German end. Germany has seven in the box.

28′ The game has definitely slowed down. Germany is playing to not lose. We need Austria to score to liven things up.

27′ Frings sends a long ball out for a goal kick.

25′ Germany plays keep-away in their own half for awhile. Lahm gets tugged down by Garics. Then, just as the kick is being taken, Podolski is smacked in the face by Pogatetz, and he goes down as if shot by that imaginary sniper who’s been in so many of these games..

23′ Podolski taken down at midfield. Free kick is taken short. Germany takes it up the right, sends it to Podolski in the middle. He takes a long, low shot that Macho has to work to tip away from goal. Podolski takes a short corner. They send it into the box but Austria takes possession.

21′ Aufhauser takes a long, hard shot that Lehmann tips wide. The corner is cleared by Podolski.

20′ Hoffer gets an amazing chance. The ball is sent to him in the box ahd he’s onside, but the ball gets away from him and Lehmann gets to it first. And then, immediately on the other end Ballack(?) gets a chance and Macho has to grab it away.

18′ Ivanschitz sends the ball long and high toward the German box and Garics, but Lahm gets to it first.

17′ Header volleyball in the midfield. The ref has a chat with Ballack. Tangle up in the German box — several bodies rolling around, but no call.

15′ Austria wins a corner. It looked good, but Germany gets it back.

14′ Gomez sends in a cross to Podolski, but Podolski’s shot is blocked by a n Austrian defender

13′ Yellos to Stranzl for a late tackle on Klose(?) Not an obvious yellow — perhaps more than a little unlucky.

12′ Ballack tries to chip it into Gomez in the box, but Austria gets to it first. Frings gets called for kicking Hamik in the knee.

11′ Germany has already shown more energy than they did in the entire Croatia game. They need a little work on finishing, though.

9′ Gomez gets another chance, but is taken down with a legit tackle to the right of the box. No call. On the next drive, Friedrich sends in a lovely cross across the face of goal, but nobody’s there to send it in.

8′ Fuchs catches Fritz with his studs down by the Austria box. They send the free kick long and high to Austria.

7′ Run up the right for Germany, but Gomez sends a hard shot straight to Macho.

5′ Mario Gomez misses an absolute sitter! The ball just needed the tiniest of tap-ins after Klose sends it to him in the box (after Klose did an excellent job of dodging defenders), but he sends it sevaral yards into the air and Austria manages to clear it.

4′ Germany looks somewhat threatening coming down the middle, but Austrian takes it away. and on the counter, Austria takes it up the left (where all their players seem to be) and sends it to Lehmann

3′ Austria sends it up the field, and Lehmann has to come out of the box and blast it up the field. There are no Austrian players nearby, so no real danger.

2′ It took us 90 seconds to get our first foul. No big deal. Then we get a long ball — Friings trying to send it to Fritz up the right, but it’s too hard and goes out for a goal kick.

1′ And we’re off. Game on. Lots of Austrian fans here.

-2′ Fuchs and Hoffer are playing their first games of the tournament. The Austrian lineup is skewed left, which could look interesting if it’s actually played that way.

-3′ And now it’s the Austrian national anthem. Man, these guys are young. It must be bad luck to shave directly before a game.

-5′ The boys are on the field, and the national anthems are playing. Germany first. My son and I have decided that Jogi Low looks like the dad on The OC.

-10′ Group B scenario: Germany goes through with a win or a draw. Austria goes through with a win, provided they have a better goal differential than Poland. Poland can go through by beating Croatia (which is possible — Croatia has made nine changes to their lineup), having Austria beat Germany, and scoring more goals than Austria.

-15′ Interesting news for Germany is that Gomez is starting. There was a rumor that he was going to be dropped for poor performance and Podolski moved up front. Apparently not — he’s starting today. Also, there was a rumor that Ivanschitz was going to be dropped to the bench for Austria, same reason. Also not happening.

-25′ and here are the lineups

Austria: Macho, Garics, Stranzl, Hiden, Pogatetz, Harnik, Aufhauser, Ivanschitz, Fuchs, Korkmaz, Hoffer. Subs: Manninger, Ozcan, Standfest, Vastic, Leitgeb, Linz, Gercaliu, Katzer, Patocka, Kienast, Saumel.
Germany: Lehmann, Friedrich, Mertesacker, Metzelder, Lahm, Fritz, Frings, Ballack, Podolski, Gomez, Klose. Subs: Enke, Adler, Jansen, Westermann, Rolfes, Neuville, Trochowski, Hitzlsperger, Borowski, Odonkor, Kuranyi.

-30′ Hi and welcome to the Austria-Germany liveblog. Germany is going to be looking to rebound from that ugly loss to Croatia, and Austria is looking to take advantage of that home-field energy to create an upset.