By Simon Wright – Follow me on Twitter @Siwri88
The first major surprise of EURO 2016 occurred on Tuesday
afternoon in Bordeaux. Making their first appearance at a European Championship
finals since 1972, Hungary made a joyous return to the major international
stage.
An excellent team performance, coupled with an awful
Austrian display saw Hungary run out 2-0 winners in the Group F opener.
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| Zoltan Steiber came off the bench to seal a shock win for Hungary |
It might have been an unmistakable Hungarian display but
all made in Germany. Their goalscorers play their football in the Bundesliga in
the shape of Adam Szalai and Zoltan Steiber (pictured finishing his goal), whilst Laszlo Kleinheiser pulled
the strings in midfield and is another who plies his trade in Germany.
Considering that 13 of the Austrian squad also play in the
top two divisions in this country, you could be mistaken for thinking this was
an advertisement for the Bundesliga!
Rewinding
the glory days
Hungary have fallen heavily from the glory days of the 1950s
when they beat England 6-3 in an international at Wembley and reached the 1954
World Cup final in Switzerland before losing to West Germany.
They haven’t figured in a major competition since the 1986
World Cup, where they lost 6-0 to the Soviet Union. This performance won’t make
them leading contenders for the competition but it surely will see them
progress to the knockout rounds. It might also lead their fans to dream of the
impossible and after the feats of Leicester City this season in England, then
who knows?
They frustrated Austria in the first half and then were
devastating on the counter attack after the restart. In fact, their first goal
was a sublime piece of understanding between Kleinheiser and Szalai.
The forward was involved in the build-up three times and
exchanged one-two passes with his colleague, before tucking the ball past the
advancing Robert Almer in the Austrian goal. You could see the relief on Szalai’s
face as he leaped into the joyous Hungarian support.
He has endured a desperate season in the Bundesliga, failing
to score for either TSG 1899 Hoffenheim or Hannover 96. In fact, this strike
was his first in 41 matches – a run stretching back to December 2014!
The second goal came on the attack as Austria pushed players
forward in search for an equaliser. Steiber, who finished the
campaign on-loan to 1. FC Nürnberg from Hamburger SV took his goal like a
seasoned veteran, chipping the ball over Almer who seemed quite hesitant in his
approach towards the substitute.
Awful
Austria
Austria had been tipped to do very well in this competition
by many observers, including myself. If this performance is anything to go by,
it will turn out to be another disappointment for their fans. Unbeaten in
qualification means absolutely nothing if you can’t do it on the main stage.
David Alaba hit the post inside the opening minute and then
his impact faded gradually as the game wore on. Injury ruined Zlatko Junuzovic’s
day whilst another creative link in Marko Arnautovic demonstrated some neat
flicks and tricks, but didn’t influence proceedings. By the end of the
match, he seemed to be more interested in getting involved with the referee rather
than changing the outcome.
Aleksandar Dragovic was sent off in the second half for two
cheap bookings. His second yellow card was a soft foul, but he gave the
French referee an option to send him off and it was the correct decision.
The worst player on the pitch was Martin Harnik. He had a terrible season at club level for VfB Stuttgart and has since been released. He was a surprise starter and he did well to last as long as
he did. His touch was poor, he looked lazy in his body language and on this
form, Harnik will struggle to find another club to employ him this summer.
He must do better because he does have some skills in his game, yet continues
to frustrate many people.
Group F has been thrown wide open by this result on a day
where an all-round team performance once again got the better of individual
talents.
My best
three players of the match
Man of the Match: Laszlo Kleinheiser (Hungary)
Kleinheiser was the creative spark in Hungary’s midfield
throughout and gave Julian Baumgartlinger a very tough afternoon. His quick
passing stood out and he played a significant part in the opening goal for Szalai
2nd: Zoltan Gera (Hungary)
He might be 37, but Zoltan Gera rolled back the years in
Bordeaux with a clinical display in a withdrawn midfield role. He made the most
passes for his side with 55, and also led the stats for the Magyars with
clearances and interceptions.
3rd: Adam Szalai (Hungary)
The relief was palpable on Szalai’s face when he found the
back of the net. The last time he scored a goal was way back in December 2014
for TSG 1899 Hoffenheim against Eintracht Frankfurt. He kept going throughout,
impressed in the build-up to his goal and finished nicely. Surely he won’t be
waiting another 41 games for his next strike.
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