Matthias Braunöder has played in all of Austria Wien's youth teams since he was 9 years old. In recent weeks, he has played his way into coach Manfred Schmid's team and has been in the starting eleven three times in a row as a central midfielder. The 19-year-old tells us how he made the steep climb up the ladder and how it all began with his father in Vienna's Favoriten district.

Braunöder made his Bundesliga debut last season on January 26 with a brief appearance in a 4-0 win at Admira. At the start of this season, the 19-year-old first collected minutes in the Cup (Spittal/Drau, Kapfenberg) and in the championship against Salzburg, Sturm and LASK as a substitute. Since the Hartberg game, Braunöder has now been in coach Manfred Schmid's starting eleven three times in a row: side by side with teammates he knows from many years together in the Austria academy:

"This is what we once dreamed of as junior players. I see it as a privilege that we youngsters from the Austria Academy currently have the chance to play for Austria Wien's first team so early on. Coach Manfred Schmid gives us a lot of confidence and gives us the time we need to make mistakes. At the same time, he also demands a lot from us - including that we do more as youngsters than established players - which is also a good thing," explains the Violette homegrown player.

As a child, Matthias Braunöder played for the club SV Sigleß, and he grew up in the neighboring village of Krensdorf. In 2001, his father registered him online for Austria's scouting training. As a 9-year-old, Matthias Braunöder was one of the best three out of 100 children to be invited to tryout. After a week or two with the purple U9s, it was clear to Austria in April 2001 that we would not miss out on this talent. In the summer, Braunöder was already scoring goals with the U10s in the championship. From then on, he played for every one of the Violets' youth teams.

Two years were particularly memorable: "The first in the academy, in the U15s, because we played for the championship title right to the end - and the U18s, because that was the first time I played with and against older players," says Matthias Braunöder, who often followed Austria games himself as a spectator and fan as a child and teenager: "Milenko Acimovic and Thomas Jun were my favorite players back then. In the old stadium I was very often watching."

Braunöder graduated from the Ballsportgymnasium, Austria Wien's cooperative school, last year. He also took a big step forward athletically in 2020. After the Corona break (March to June 2020), Braunöder really took off with the Young Violets shortly before his 18th birthday, established himself as a regular player and played no less than 40 games in the 2nd Division in twelve months (06/20-05/21).

"I was already making the leap into the team beforehand, then went full throttle at home during the Corona break, and as a result, when things got going again, I was fully in the juice. The jump from U18 to professional soccer to the Young Violets was the biggest. That has certainly been good for my development," Matthias Braunöder says.

He has been at home in central midfield since childhood, most recently playing there alongside Eric Martel. Against Admira, he was involved in both Austria goals, and his cross directly set up Ohio's goal. The 19-year-old is also already regularly taking responsibility in standard situations: "I see myself as a a box-to-box player who can contribute in defensive and offensive midfield," explains Braunöder, who really likes the youth path Austria is taking: