Austria are officially a dark horse.
Are they a horse? Evidently not. Do they play in dark shirts? Nope, their kits are red or white.
So what’s that about then? What is a dark horse and why are Austria one at Euro 2024?
According to the internet, dark horse is a term that goes back to — and yes this might be a bit zany for you — horse racing. When horses were horses. The internet suggests the first known mention of the phrase dates back to 1831 when Benjamin Disraeli, then a mere writer and years away from becoming Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, penned in a novel that a literal, actual dark horse unexpectedly won a horse race when no one thought it would.
In basic terms, then, it is an unfancied outsider.
Anyway, football! Dark horses. The term has taken on a few specific facets in recent decades and the reasons that Austria are one are thus.
1) Dark horses can’t be ranked among the pre-tournament favourites. Austria weren’t and they still aren’t. They’re ninth in the list behind what you’d term the usual suspects of France, Germany, Spain, England, Portugal, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium.
2) Dark horses can’t have much historical pedigree. Austria certainly haven’t in modern times — since the 1954 World Cup, when they finished third, they have only reached one knockout stage of any international tournament. At Euro 2020, they lost to Italy in the last 16.
3) Dark horses might have a decent recent record which has gone under the radar. Yep, Austria came into the tournament unbeaten in seven matches and hinted at their explosive attacking abilities by canning Turkey (Euro 2020’s dark horses) 6-1 in March.
4) Dark horses preferably have an air of mystique about them, either via sexy players or a mythical coach. Step forward Christoph Baumgartner, Marcel Sabitzer, Patrick Wimmer and perennial strutting talisman Marko Arnautovic, plus Austria’s ace in the pack: pressing merchant Ralf Rangnick in their dugout.
It’s been an impressive two years for Rangnick, who is going some way to rebuilding his reputation after a few depressing months at Manchester United in early 2022.
But for all their exciting football, their transformed tactical approach, the tangible sense of restored national pride (“stand together behind Austria,” a huge banner read before kick-off) and their impressive friendly victories over Germany and Italy, if Austria had, on the back of being edged out 1-0 by France in their opening Euro 2024 fixture, been beaten by Poland on Friday, it all would have been for nothing.
This felt like their judgement day, the moment Rangnick had been building towards for two years. And at half-time, with Austria having started so well but ceded their early lead with a worryingly passive and uncharacteristically timid 20-minute spell before the break, their hopes were on a knife-edge in a match where the loser would surely be staring at an early exit.
Baumgartner embraces Rangnick after scoring (Dan Mullan/Getty Images)
“There was a lot of pressure on us; we felt it before the game and couldn’t even have an afternoon nap because there was so much stress,” Baumgartner said.
“At half-time, Rangnick made it clear that he puts a lot of trust in me and that I could make the difference, that there were not just friends and family behind me, but the coach and the whole nation. He took his time to speak with me and encourage me.”
It worked. As did Rangnick’s substitutions, stretching play by sending on a right winger in Wimmer and an attack-minded left-footer in Alexander Prass at left-back (in place of the sprightly but right-footed Phillipp Mwene) and creating space for Baumgartner and Sabitzer to exploit, with Baumgartner moving from what Rangnick called the ‘nine and a half’ position into the 10.
Within three minutes of Prass’s introduction, he had picked out Baumgartner, who in turn picked out the bottom corner of the net. Baumgartner, Prass, the whole team, they all ran to Rangnick, their innovative inspiration.
Thereafter, as Poland pushed forward, Austria had a field day with the space afforded to them in the final third. They can press and run and pass in vertical lines, sure, but they can play as well, via a creative and fluid forward line which screams fun.
It finished 3-1 but on another day, they would have scored four or five; Poland were well very beaten, despite the presence from the bench of Robert Lewandowski.
All of which puts Austria in a good position to qualify and, as Rangnick said before the tournament, if they can squeeze through a group which also contains France and the Netherlands, they will fear no one.
Dark horses? Secret favourites? “It’s nice to be called that,” Baumgartner says. “We won against Germany in the build-up and we’ve had a really good period in the last months.
“People start to think big quite quickly… we know that if we reach our maximum, we can beat a lot of nations.
“The pressure comes from within. We know about our quality.”
So does everyone else now. Rangnick and Austria need a point against the Dutch on Tuesday to reach the last 16. A narrow defeat to keep their positive goal difference intact might be enough too but they will fancy causing an upset.
“Since I’ve been the coach here, that was the important important match we’ve played — and that’s why we’re really content and happy,” Rangnick said.
“For long periods, we played like we did in the qualifiers and friendlies before the Euros.”
If they do that against the Dutch and whoever else may come after that, keep your eye on Austria. Attacking flair, goals, a clear structure and a smart tactical plan… all things which could take them far.
Who knows? They may be walloped on Tuesday, they may crumble under the pressure they are clearly feeling — but, right now, are Austria, Euro 2024 dark horses? Yep, it’s official.
(Top photo: Austria celebrate their win over Poland; by Julian Finney via Getty Images)
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