Thanks for joining me and your contributions.
Here is the match report.
Big stats ...
1 - @David_Alaba 🇦🇹 has become the first Austrian defender to assist in an European Championships Finals ever, the first one for his country in a major tournament this century (since Anton Pfeffer vs Cameroon in the 1998 World Cup). Captain#AustriaVsNorthMacedonia #EURO2020 pic.twitter.com/EBYh81fby7
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) June 13, 2021
The final goal.
Marko Arnautovic joins the party! 🥳
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 13, 2021
💌 Signed, sealed and delivered: three points for #AUT #ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/4t8qB5dMtV
“Is Arnautovic the most unlikeable footballer currently playing?,” asks Samuel Campbell. “Maybe just me but everything he does winds me up.”
The Austria staff are very very happy, as they jump and hug simultaneously on the sidelines.
Full-time: Austria 3-1 North Macedonia
It’s Austria! It’s Austria! They were certainly the better team and proved their quality as the game went on. All of their three goals came from fantastic assists, it has to be said.
90+2 mins: Laimer gets the wrong side of the defence but goes for goal himself, rather than passing to Arnautovic, much to the goalscorer’s chagrin.
90 mins: Four minutes added on.
GOAL! Austria 3-1 North Macedonia (Arnautovic, 89)
Laimer sends a wonderful flick into the path of the former West Ham striker who goes round the goalkeeper and places the ball into the empty net. He runs away to celebrate but gets annoyed with his teammates for overzealous hugging or something.
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88 mins: Alioski sends in a straight free-kick, Milan Ristovski attacks it but the striker takes his eye off the ball and misses it complete.
86 mins: Lainer stops a counter attack with a tactical foul. He gets a booking for his troubles but will not mind.
Milan Ristovski, another striker, is on for North Macedonia. He joins his brother Stefan on the pitch.
84 mins: Just as it looks like Alioski will get the ball inside the box, Lainer performs a stunning tackle. North Macedonia are certainly giving it a go.
Incredible cross from Alaba for the goal.
📞 Hello, this is @David_Alaba - how may I assist you?
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 13, 2021
That cross from the #AUT captain 🤩#ITVFootball | #EURO2020 pic.twitter.com/QEd9Wzk5vS
82 mins: Trickovski is on for North Macedonia as they roll the dice.
80 mins: After both Austria goals, the scorer has celebrated with a t-shirt sending best wishes to Christian Eriksen, which is lovely.
“Since the mix-up with his keeper that gifted North Macedonia their goal, David Alaba has been pretty solid in central defence,” says Peter Oh. “Liverpool should take a look at him to play that role. He could put pressure on Jordan Henderson and Fabinho.” He’s just signed for Real Madrid, sadly.
GOAL! Austria 2-1 North Macedonia (Gregoritsch, 78)
Alaba roams forward and finds himself on the left flank from where he sends in a fantastic low cross for Gregoritsch to attack, beating the goalkeeper to the ball, allowing him to send it into the back of the net.
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77 mins: Can we get a winner in Bucharest? The game is certainly more open now.
Mary Waltz says: “If anyone thinks the “ragging” on this match is unreasonable (I agree) you should try reading the abuse Southgate is getting in the comment section of the match report on the Croatia fixture. And he won!” I never got BTL.
75 mins: Elmas tries to turn a cross towards goal but his effort is blocked by Hinteregger.
“It baffles me why corners aren’t subject to VAR reviews,” says Kári Tulinius. “The play has stopped anyway and it’s usually a fairly quick thing to check. But instead we have endless time spent on measuring whether an attacker’s nose is ahead of a defender’s rump.” That would slow things down too much.
73 mins: North Macedonia are showing plenty of ambition and Elmas seems to be liberated, allowing him to go forward a bit more.
71 mins: Alioski tries to find Elmas over the top but Alaba reads the danger and sweeps up.
69 mins: “I don’t get the ragging on this game,” says Brad Wilson. “The skill level is pretty high, the tempo is terrific, and there has been a lot of sharp, clever play. Certainly more entertaining than watching Italy carve up Turkey in a one-sided farce. Fans are cool too. What’s not to like?” It is, to be fair, a decent game.
67 mins: Alaba swings in a corner from the right but it is flicked well over the bar by Sabitzer, who shouts at the referee as he thinks it should be another corner. I think he might be right, too.
65 mins: Substitute Gregoritsch flicks on a wonderful inswinging cross from the left towards the top corner but Dimitrievski reacts to palm it away. It is a stunning save. The goalkeepers have proved themselves in the past few minutes.
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63 mins: Elmas finally shows his quality on the ball with a beauty of a pace through the Austrian defence for Nikolov to latch onto but his shot/cross is blocked by the onrushing Bachmann.
61 mins: Both teams are looking dangerous until the ball gets into the final third when things keep breaking down. I can’t remember either goalkeeper making a save.
59 mins: Gregoritsch joins Arnautovic on the pitch. Baumgartner and Kalajdzic are off.
57 mins: Dimitrievski comes out to punch a cross but he gets a knock in the ribs and goes down after claiming the ball at the second time of asking. The goalkeeper needs plenty of treatment but is up. Arnautovic is coming on.
Updated
55 mins: The tempo and intensity is certainly increasing in the game but there is plenty of sloppiness thrown into the mix with passes going awry.
53 mins: Alioski goes into the book for an overzealous challenge around knee high. Not the best from the Leeds man. All the players get involved in a 4/10 melee, only for it to be broken up by the referee and his assistants.
51 mins: Lienhart does some fine defending to get to the ball first on the edge of his own box, before taking it away from danger only to be fouled by Pandev.
49 mins: There is certainly more ambition within the Austria team than North Macedonia in the opening stages of the second half.
“It’s always interesting how national soccer belays the territorial trap,” Edwin Painter says. “Bogdan’s comment (44 mins) is a reminder about how the neat containers of nations are more complicated, same with Shaqiri’s celebration from a few years back. Also Mexican national teams enjoy good support when playing the Americans in the US.”
47 mins: I have just eaten a crisp, which is terrible news for my laptop.
Second half
Here we go again!
Lienhart is on for Dragovic.
“Austrian - and long-time MBM follower - here,” by the name of Johannes Steiner. “So strange to see my country in the centre of attention. It’s like being picked for audience participation at the high school theatre, coming up on stage and realising that ... I don’t wear pants/lederhosen. Here is to Marko Arnautovic taking me off that stage in the second half.”
Matthew Richman emails to bemoan my very existence: “Such snobbery in this MBM that I frankly didn’t expect! I don’t love the bloated nature of this new tournament format myself, but I absolutely appreciate that it gives us a chance to watch teams like North Macedonia line up for the first major tournament of their history. It might not be France vs. Germany, but you know a side facing a moment like that will give it all.
“In all the terror associated with Denmark vs. Finland, it’s easy to lose track of a massive victory for Finland in *their* first major tournament. I wouldn’t blame any Finn a little sad they can’t celebrate the win after what happened.”
ITV’s background is of where I used to live (not the Tower of London). Lovely stuff.
Half-time: Austria 1-1 North Macedonia
I think, overall, Austria have been the better team but there is not much in it. The goals have come from the one quality moment of the game and the funniest, which is wonderful.
Updated
45 mins: Two minutes added on.
44 mins: Dragovic is still down.
Bogdan Kotarlic says: “This is certainly not the most important match in the Euro 2020 but, for example, it is much followed in my home country (Serbia) as well as in other parts of former Yugoslavia. The reason is that North Macedonia used to be part of my country and there are many players of this region’s origin in the Austrian team (Dragovic, Kalajdzic, Arnautovic...).”
42 mins: Baumgartner runs into a defender inside and seems to think he deserves a foul for it, so spends far too long on the pitch moaning about it. The referee does not share his feelings.
Trajkovski is booked for catching Dragovic in the face with his elbow. The Austrian is not too happy.
40 mins: David Alaba is playing in the middle of a back three. I think he might be wasted there. Surely any half-decent centre-back can play that role. Use your dynamic players somewhere more useful is my advice.
38 mins: “For all the sneering about this game, we’ve already seen two fantastic goals (if in totally different ways),” emails Alexandre Chesneau. “Let’s hope it continues ! The people not watching don’t know what they’re missing (arguably, not much, but these two goals make up for it).” This is better than the Wales game.
The Pandev goal in all its glory.
What a moment for #MKD - their first goal at a major tournament! 🤩
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 13, 2021
Bachmann can't gather the ball... and that man Pandev pounces! 😎#ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/IvUjNJh05y
36 mins: Velkovski goes down after a bang on the head but he seems fine.
“Was the goal hilarious? Yes,” says Evan Crocker. “But Goran Pandev scored! How great is that?”
Comedy and greatness is a fine mix.
34 mins: Austria are looking the more confident here and are offering a bit more ambition going forward. Alaba takes a corner which is punched clear.
Age is just a number.
37 - Aged 37 years and 321 days, North Macedonia's Goran Pandev is the second-oldest player ever to score at the EUROs, after Austria's Ivica Vastic (38 years 257 days) vs Poland in 2008. Golden. #EURO2020 pic.twitter.com/OsuGlza92X
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 13, 2021
32 mins: Neither side is able to take control of the fixture.
Peter Oh says: “Black and turquoise also happen to be the colours of Austria’s main conservative political party, the ÖVP. But that’s completely coincidental to the fact that the Austrian opener was scored by the right winger.” DO NOT MIX SPORT AND POLITICS!
30 mins: Quality and comedy in this game. What more could we want from two goals?
Espen Bommen points out we are all wasting our lives: “Regarding discussing anything but football(10 mins). In fairness, I’m not sure Austria- North Macedonia has the mass appeal you might think it does, so discussing other things isn’t a bad idea. I’m honestly not sure why I’m even watching. Plus, MBM’s can make games better! Proof? The MBM from Switzerland-Ukraine back in the 2006 World Cup was brilliant. The game itself? Well, I just hope that whatever deity you believe in will agree that at the end you deserve a couple of hours extra to make up for the two you spent watching that game.”
I am not sure this MBM will make the world a better place.
GOAL! Austria 1-1 North Macedonia (Pandev, 28)
If you like your goals with a massive dollop of farce, then this is the one for you. A failed clearance bounces off an Austrian and goes through into the box but all seems fine as Bachmann comes out to claim but he somehow loses the ball and Pandev taps the loose ball into an empty net.
Updated
26 mins: Alioski swings in a free-kick from the right but the referee spots a foul in the box and the danger is over before it began.
24 mins: North Macedonia need to get Elmas on the ball more and let Sabitzer cross the ball less.
You cannot knock that goal.
What a pass... and what a finish! 😱
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 13, 2021
Stefan Lainer gets #AUT off to the perfect start at @Euro2020 - and in some style!#ITVFootball | #Euro2020 pic.twitter.com/2HYOCdjFb9
22 mins: Kalajdzic finds space at the front post to connect with another fine Sabitzer cross but his volley is weak and easily collected by the goalkeeper. He really should do better from six yards out without anyone pressuring him.
Back to the goal ... I love that pass and finish. To predict the run from Lainer is one thing but for Sabitzer to make the pass inch perfect and his teammate to control the finish, really is stunning all round.
20 mins: “And while we’re at it,” adds Simon McMahon, “the North Macedonians haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory either with their choice of kit for their first ever match at a major finals. Somewhat underwhelming. Now the Scotland kit, that’s a belter.”
GOAL! Austria 1-0 North Macedonia (Lainer, 18)
Sabitzer pings a beautiful crossfield pass into the box where Lainer finds space and volleys first-time across the goalkeeper. It is a stunning technical goal. The game is alive.
Updated
16 mins: Hinteregger tries to slip a ball through the North Macedonia defence but he overhits it in comical fashion and it drifts out for a goal-kick.
14 mins: I am starting to get the feeling that Austria are not very good. Please prove me wrong in the remaining 76 minutes. They are just looking for the big man and flick-ons currently. It’s nice outside, lads.
12 mins: Alioski is looking lively on the left, which might be explained by the fact he is out of contract at Leeds and looking for a bumper pay day elsewhere.
More kit chat.
I applaud Austria for not giving in to the one-colour tyranny, but why would their contrast shorts be pale turquoise?
— Jonathan Wilson (@jonawils) June 13, 2021
10 mins: North Macedonia look to have more intent when they get the ball, which is a good sign. Austria seem more content to keep the tempo down but control possession.
“Hi Will,” says Simon McMahon. “That is a hideous kit the Austrians are wearing. The shirt itself isn’t bad, but the colour clash with the shorts and socks is just wrong. You won’t hear that sort of analysis on ITV at half time I’ll bet.”
We have been discussing anything other than football for the opening 10 minutes. It might say something about the game.
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8 mins: I went to this stadium for Manchester City’s 5-0 win over Steaua a few years ago. A cracking atmosphere, mainly as the home fans were pranked by Dinamo.
Alioski throws himself to the ground again but does receive a free-kick on this occasion.
“I’m disappointed with Austria,” emails Anis Aslaam. “They’re not wearing their diamond pattern jersey.” Diamonds aren’t forever.
6 mins: Alioski chucks himself to the ground in desperation. The referee is having none of it.
“What a moment this must be for Macedonians watching,” Kári Tulinius says. “As an Icelander, I can testify that besides pride and sheer joy, it is also just really bizarre to see your nation debut at a major international tournament. On some level, you just aren’t prepared to turn on a game at the European Championships and hear your country’s anthem blaring, except as a terrible mistake by the stadium techs.”
4 mins: Austria look to be playing quite direct, which is unsurprising when your centre forward is 6ft7.
2 mins: An incredibly quiet start on the pitch. The 5,000 North Macedonia fans are making some noise off the pitch.
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Kick-off
Peep! Peep! Peep! Here we go!
The delightful Richard Jolly.
Goran Pandev makes his debut in a major international tournament, 7312 days after his debut in international football.
— Richard Jolly (@RichJolly) June 13, 2021
All the players in the tournament for you to check out.
It was absolutely roasting at Wembley for the England match, so you might think it’s even hotter in Bucharest. It is, however, much cooler at 19C in Romania, much to the relief of the players.
Plenty to know about North Macedonia.
Elif Elmas.
Frankly, I could sit here and pretend to be an expert on these two teams or I can point you in the direction of people who actually are.
Austria:
Sasa Kalajdzic:
We are all wishing Christian Eriksen the best. I spoke with Finland captain Tim Sparv about last night.
Fill your boots with Nick Ames ...
Starting lineups
Austria: Bachmann, Ulmer, Dragovic, Hinteregger, Alaba, Sabitzer, Baumgartner, Lainer, Schlager, Laimer, Kalajdzic
Subs: Pervan, Lienhart, Trimmel, Ilsanker, Grillitsch, Baumgartlinger, Schaub, Schöpf, Lazaro, Arnautovic, Gregoritsch
North Macedonia: Dimitrievski, S. Ristovski, Velkovski, Musliu, Nikolov, Alloski, Bardi, Ademi, Elmas, Trajkovski, Pandev
Subs: Siskovski, Jankov, Bejtulai, Ristevski, Spirovski, Hasani, Kostadinov, Avramovski, Churlinov, Trickovski, Velkoski, M. Ristovski.
Good afternoon
We welcome North Macedonia and Austria to the tournament. Neither side is expected to trouble the latter stages of the competition but what a fantastic achievement to be here. I was supposed to be in Bucharest to cover this game but, one pandemic and small baby later, I am here to entertain you.
There is plenty of quality on both sides, with Goran Pandev and Eljif Elmas the standout players for North Macedonia, who will be looking to do some damage. Pandev has plenty of experience and will not be fazed by taking his nation to the biggest stage. Elmas, for a 21-year-old, can boast a lot of games, having already represented clubs in his homeland, Turkey and now Napoli in Italy. He is certainly one to keep an eye on.
David Alaba of massive wages at Real Madrid fame is the most notable man for Austria. Between their three goalkeepers, Austria can only boast 15 international caps, which is quite surprising going into a major tournament. Having a steady figure between the sticks has always seemed important to me, but I am generally wrong.
Let’s hope for a cracker!
Kick-off: 5pm BST
