Euro2008 Preview: Austria v Poland

Austria striker Roland Linz could be fit despite sustaining an ankle injury in Sunday's defeat by Croatia but Roman Kienast stands by to replace him. Captain Andreas Ivanschitz is set to play despite torn ligaments in his right knee but Umit Korkmaz is also pushing for a place in midfield.

Roger Guerreiro is expected to replace Poland captain Maciej Zurawski, who is sidelined with a thigh injury. And Jakub Wawrzyniak could come in for Pawel Golanski at left-back. Kienast is eager to get his chance against the Poles after featuring for just 17 minutes as a substitute against Croatia. "I hope I will play from the beginning but that is up to the coach," he said. "I am happy Roland was back in training. There is no harsh competition between the two of us. I have a lot of self-belief and I try to convince the coach he should pick me because of my performances."

Linz was told to rest by the Austrian team doctor on Tuesday but chose to train anyway. "I was surprised that he did take part but he wanted to fight for his place in the starting team." Austria coach Josef Hickersberger said.

Poland coach Leo Beenhakker would not confirm whether Roger would definitely start but has been impressed with what the Brazilian-born forward brings to his team. "He is great," Beenhakker said. "He's amazing, he's fantastic. He sees solutions and makes choices on the field that are, well, it's Brazilian. I cannot explain it in any other way."

BIG MATCH STATS
Head-to-heads

Austria and Poland have met on seven previous occasions with Austria winning three times and Poland four.

Poland have won both competitive matches, 3-2 and 1-3 in the qualifying tournament for World Cup 2006.