Ukraine and Austria go head-to-head for second-place in UEFA Euro 2020’s Group C

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Ukraine and Austria face off in Bucharest in their final matches of the group stage at UEFA Euro 2020.

Both sides have already seen off North Macedonia, achieving 2-1 and 3-1 victories respectively. However, they fell short to the Netherlands, meaning that the Dutch top the group with six points with Ukraine and Austria behind them on three points each and North Macedonia on zero points as they are unable to progress further in the tournament.

Therefore, Ukraine and Austria’s encounter is brilliantly poised, and with second place up for grabs, both sides will be desperate to confirm their involvement in the knockout stages.

Andriy Shevchenko’s side have provided plenty of entertainment so far. A 3-2 defeat and a 2-1 victory against the Netherlands and North Macedonia has seen plenty of surprising performances and some that have perhaps gone under the radar.

Roman Yaremchuk has certainly impressed so far in the tournament. The striker, who stands at six-foot and three inches tall, scored 20 goals for Belgian side Gent this season and has carried that form into the tournament with two standout performances for his country.

It has certainly been enjoyable to watch the 25-year-old for Shevchenko’s side, and he has shown that there is still space for a big, physical striker in the modern game.

Andriy Yarmolenko and Ruslan Malinovskiy have also caught the eye for Ukraine, with the former showing exactly how effective he can be when fit. Unfortunately for Yarmolenko, he suffers from frequent spells on the sidelines and as a result, he has failed to make a big impact since arriving at West Ham United.

On the other hand, Malinovskiy has enjoyed a successful season at Atalanta and has been Ukraine’s best creative outlet so far. With great vision and technical ability, the 28-year-old has not only been a fantastic, dynamic midfielder for Ukraine in open play, but he also provides a great threat from set pieces.

Austria will need to pick themselves back up after a 2-0 defeat to the Netherlands. Franco Foda’s side have been steady so far and they showed a good amount of character to score two late goals to win their first match against North Macedonia.

In truth, if they hadn’t beaten Igor Angelovski’s men, there would have been a real cause for concern, so the clash against Ukraine is their first chance to face a team of a very similar standard to themselves.

As is often the case in international competitions, both squads have a relatively clean bill of health. Oleksandr Zubkov is a doubt for Shevchenko’s side, he was forced off 12 minutes in against the Netherlands and failed to make the squad in their 2-1 victory over North Macedonia.

For Austria, only Valentino Lazaro is a doubt after also sustaining an injury against the Dutch, so both managers have the bulk of their squad to call upon.

The clash is the most significant so far in the group, and Austria must get the better of Ukraine to make the second-placed spot their own. As such, this is set to be a fascinating encounter and if Ukraine’s trend of entertaining matches continues, goals can certainly be expected.

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