BREDA, August 3, 2017 – When Austria and Denmark took uptheir positions for kickoff at the Rat Verlegh Stadium, Austrian goalkeeperManuela Zinsberger almost went to the wrong end of the pitch.
After the semi-final of UEFA Women's EURO 2017 againstDenmark, once again decided by penalties after a goalless 120 minutes, this apparentlyharmless slip appears like a bad omen.
The mental strength of the Austrian team was thepredominant topic of discussion after the shootout victory over Spain in thequarter-finals.
However, in Breda, their celebrated rock-like mentalityfound its limitation. After a missed penalty by Sarah Puntigam in the 13thminute, Austrian determination already seemed to waver. By the end of theadditional 30 minutes, the players seemed exhausted both mentally andphysically.
Coach Dominik Thalhammer said: “We could not handle thesituation as well as other times. Of course, the pressure was different, afterall this was the semi-final of the Euros.
"I think the first penalty which was missed by Sarahwas the key element in this game. You could see how her performance sufferedafterwards because she could not get it out of her head.”
Puntigam, who missed the penalty awarded for hand againstDenmark's Maja Kildemoes, still sounded after the match as if she still couldnot believe it.
She said: “I was so certain before, the ball should havegone right in the corner. I am not sure what happened. During the game I triedto push it out of my head but the longer the match lasted the more difficult itgot.”
Zinsberger, one of the best goalkeepers of the Euro,refused to blame that early setback.
She said: “The missed penalty by Sarah wasn´t on ourminds at all, we win as a team and we lose as a team. That is the thing withpenalties, sometimes it is simply luck that decides it.”
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The role of luck might be disputed in this case however,after all, the Austrian players missed four penalties in a row.
Laura Feiersinger, daughter of former Borussia Dortmundplayer Wolfgang Feiersinger and who missed one of the three in the shootout,said: "I am not completely sure what happened, I had my plan how to shoot,but then it just went over the goal."
The way in which unwavering mental strength had featuredin training made it even harder to watch the Austrians beaten by the Danes onpenalties.
However Austria, as newcomers reaching the semifinalswith an exceptional overall performance, will remember Euro 2017 fondly.
They must now make their way home from the Netherlandsbut this will surely not prove their last appearance on the internationalstage.
Follow Clara Reimitz on Twitter @cmreimitz
