An Austrian Energy Drink and a Mountain to Climb
Red Bull, wings, Turkey… There’s got to be something in there, right?
Austria vs Turkey on Tuesday 2nd July 2024 was a match overflowing, fizzing, bubbling up with narrative and pun fodder as much as it was gegenpressing, tough-tackling and out-of-possession shapes.
The final round of 16 encounter of Euro 24 was a low-key but intriguing prospect with perpetual dark horses pitted against each other. But it was a particular bovine rather than equine on the minds of fans of narrative.
Austria boss Ralf Rangnick, the so-called ‘Godfather of the Gegenpress’, marched his men back to Leipzig, where he spent nine years bouncing between roles as Sporting Director and Manager sculpting the Red Bull football identity of tactic nerd folklore.
Accompanied by current RasenBallsport employees Christoph Baumgartner and Nicolas Seiwald in a pre-game press conference, Rangnick spoke of happy memories at the Red Bull Arena, alluding to destiny, fate or something else that makes you feel warm and fuzzy.
With midfield men Marcel Sabitzer and Konrad Laimer among others who knew the venue’s pitch dimensions, changing rooms and non-brand specific energy drink vending machines like the back of their hand, Das Team were undoubtedly feeling at home.
But as the unwelcome cadence of the referee’s full time whistle echoed around the Leipzig Arena (as it’s known during UEFA tournaments) after 94 minutes, it was the boys in red who slumped to the sodden turf. 2-1 to Vincenzo Montella’s young Turks. A spirited, but ultimately unproductive Austrian fightback, had been quashed by a Demiral double.
The Austrians might have been grateful that their tears were masked by the biblical downpour which had quickly become characteristic of this tournament. Though they wouldn’t have thanked the Turkish fans for the rain of souvenir plastic cups from the stands, containing the dregs of what one could only hope was top quality German lager.
Austria couldn’t clip Turkey’s wings?… No… The Turkish flag is the red rag to the bull?… No… By the time Sam Matterface had cobbled something together on ITV comms, I’d accepted defeat.