On July 2, 2024, the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig will host the Round of 16 match of the European Championship, featuring Austria and Turkey. A tense confrontation is expected, given the fighting spirit and attacking capabilities of both teams.

Austria, under Ralf Rangnick, has shown good form recently, and his influence is evident in the team’s play. Most of the Austrian players compete in the German Bundesliga, making this a sort of home field advantage. Key players include representatives from Borussia Dortmund, Hoffenheim, Bayern Munich, Wolfsburg, Leipzig, Werder Bremen, Freiburg, and Borussia Mönchengladbach, with veteran Inter Milan forward Marko Arnautović leading the attack.

Historically, Austria has not been highly successful in the European Championships, with their best result being the Round of 16 in EURO 2020, where they lost to Italy in extra time. In the current EURO 2024, Austria qualified confidently, finishing second in their group, just one point behind Belgium. They won six of their eight qualifying matches, losing only once to Belgium.

Turkey, coached by the experienced Vincenzo Montella, also had a strong group stage performance. Key players include Hakan Çalhanoğlu, a leader both on and off the field, and young Real Madrid attacker Arda Güler. Turkey’s last significant achievement was a bronze medal in EURO 2008. They struggled in EURO 2020, failing to advance from the group stage.

In the current tournament, Turkey finished second in their group, tied on points with Portugal. They started with a win over Georgia, suffered a defeat to Portugal, and secured a crucial victory over the Czech Republic to advance. Both teams have shown stable and quality play, but Austria looks slightly stronger thanks to their organized attack and experienced key players.

Prediction:

Austria win (1): 1.96
Draw (X): 3.35
Turkey win (2): 4.20

Bonus 30 FS Gonzales