Gregoritsch, Arnautovic strike late as Austria sink North Macedonia

June 13, 2021 North Macedonia's Milan Ristovski in action with Austria's Martin Hinteregger Pool via REUTERS

Late goals from substitutes Michael Gregoritsch and Marko Arnautovic gave Austria a convincing 3-1 victory over European Championship debutants North Macedonia in an entertaining opening Group C clash on Sunday.

Gregoritsch prodded home David Alaba's cross in the 78th minute before Arnautovic struck in the 89th, as Austria earned a first win at the Euros at their seventh attempt and their first victory at a major tournament since the 1990 World Cup.

Stefan Lainer put Austria ahead with an acrobatic effort in the 18th minute when he latched on to Marcel Sabitzer's cross-field pass at the back post, leaping into the air to beat keeper Stole Dimitrievski from a tight angle.

North Macedonia captain Goran Pandev equalised 10 minutes later to bag his team's first-ever goal at a major tournament after capitalising on a mix-up in the Austrian defence, but it was not to be for the tournament's lowest-ranked team.

Austria resume their campaign against Netherlands in Amsterdam on Thursday, while North Macedonia stay in Bucharest to face Ukraine.