Baumgartner (left) no longer has to worry about his fitness
Christoph Baumgartner has dispelled all worries about his EM fitness. The young star of the Austrian national soccer team injured his ankle three weeks ago, but already played an hour in the test in England (0: 1) on Wednesday. “I'm ahead of schedule,” said the 21-year-old on Friday afternoon on the sidelines of the adoption of the ÖFB team by the Federal President and the top government in the Vienna Hofburg.
The fitness test in England was “very positive” for him. “The foot was not a problem for the entire course,” explained Baumgarner. “It's going amazingly well – I wasn't expecting it too well.” The offensive man of the German Bundesliga club 1899 Hoffenheim will be available to team boss Franco Foda on Sunday (5.30 p.m. / live ORF 1) at the EM dress rehearsal in Vienna against Slovakia.
“I hope we can play a good game and win the game,” said Baumgartner. “It was okay against England, but the result didn't work out. Now we want to take advantage of the opportunities and spark a little euphoria.” The Lower Austrian had already seen an official farewell in 2019 before the U21 European Championship. The tingling sensation before his first major event with the A-Team is now increasing “day by day”. Austria starts the EM on June 13th in Bucharest against North Macedonia.
