Rangnick Clarifies Goalkeeper Question for Nations League Opener

Alexander Schlager will be in goal for the ÖFB team for the start of the UEFA Nations League against Israel (Thursday, from 8:45 PM in the LIVE ticker >>>).

This was announced by national team coach Ralf Rangnick at Wednesday's press conference. Since his summer transfer from FC Red Bull Salzburg to Werder Bremen, Alexander Schlager has exclusively played in the DFB-Pokal.

The current lack of playing time is not yet a concern for the 68-year-old: "At the moment, I don't see it as a problem; he also played in the cup, and before that, he played a really good World Cup for us. That's why I can confirm he will start for us tomorrow."

No Guaranteed Starting Spot for the Next Matches

However, competition for the ÖFB goal is high: Florian Wiegele (Viktoria Pilsen) was already part of the World Cup squad, while Lukas Jungwirth (LASK) and Christian Zawieschitzky (Red Bull Salzburg) have been called up for the first time – all are starting goalkeepers for their respective clubs.

That's also why Rangnick says: "As a permanent solution, we'll have to see what that means. We deliberately invited the two young players (editor's note: Jungwirth and Zawieschitzky). They have made a really good impression so far, Florian Wiegele especially. The performance principle applies here too; everyone has to prove themselves. Alex will play tomorrow – what that means for the next matches and training camps remains to be seen."

After the home match against Israel, three more Nations League duels await the ÖFB team during this training camp: a home match against Kosovo (Sept 27), an away game in Ireland (Oct 1), and an away match against Kosovo (Oct 4).