Euro 2008 joint hosts turn foes on the pitch

AFP - 12 October 2007 19:06

A dash of rivalry will be added to the smooth flowing build-up for Euro 2008 on Saturday as Switzerland, led by coach Jakob Kuhn seen here in May 2007, and Austria meet for a friendly 237 days before they jointly host the event.

GENEVA (AFP) - A dash of rivalry will be added to the smooth flowing build-up for Euro 2008 on Saturday as Switzerland and Austria meet for a friendly 237 days before they jointly host the event.

The neighbourly clash in Zurich has the makings of a revenge match following Switzerland's 2-1 defeat in Innsbruck last year, and Swiss coach Jakob "Kobi" Kuhn has been surprised by the amount of pressure on his opponents' shoulders.

"I was astonished to find that even former internationals and an ex national team coach were coming down on the side. That's not very elegant," Kuhn commented.

Lacklustre Austria's largely home based squad sees the return of captain Andreas Ivanschitz, after a draw with the Czech Republic in August, a 2-0 home defeat against Chile and a penalty victory against Japan after 0-0 draw last month.

Meanwhile Switzerland have shown fleeting signs of inspiration in the absence of competitive qualifying matches as Kuhn tries to add some depth to his World Cup squad by trying out young newcomers in friendlies.

After a 1-1 draw against Argentina, 2-1 victories against the Netherlands and against Chile during the summer, the Swiss squandered a clear first half lead to lose 4-3 against Japan a month ago.

Saturday's tie could turn into a sharp test for the youngsters' in the absence of about six injured first choice players, including Dortmund striker Alexander Frei.

Meanwhile preparations off the field appear to be slotting into place smoothly on either side of the border. Even neighbouring French police were being lined up to help with security in Switzerland.

UEFA chief Michel Platini this week gave the thumbs up after touring the eight Euro 2008 venues -- Basel, Bern, Geneva and Zurich in Switzerland, Innsbruck, Klagenfurt, Salzburg and Vienna in Austria.

"We're absolutely on schedule. The work that has been undertaken by Euro 2008 has been exemplary," he said.

Most of the stadiums are new or renovated, with a capacity of 30,000 to 40,000, while the venerable 50,000 seat Ernst-Happel stadium in Vienna is being spruced up to host the final.

"The stadium in Vienna is a lot older than the others, but it has a lot of atmosphere and is a worthy venue for the final," Platini said.

"It would have made no sense for Switzerland and Austria to build bigger stadiums," he added.

Outside a handful of top clubs, football leagues in both countries measure match attendaces by the single-digit thousands.

In Switzerland, most of the the best young players have been snapped up by German, Italian, Spanish and English clubs, but that has also turned the national side into a magnet for local fans.

And Euro 2008 is having no trouble recruiting local volunteers to help out during the tournament -- the organisers say they are well on their way to interviewing double the 5,000 they need.

A first round of ticket sales was hugely oversubscribed with 8.7 million requests and had to be settled by lottery, indicating that matches will play before capacity crowds next June.

The Alpine nations are better known for keeping their heartiness under wraps until the right moment, and the organisers believe the missing ingredient will emerge once next summer's match line-up is settled at the draw in December.