The decisive game in the fight for participation in the master group is also waiting for Rapid. With a home win against the Carinthians at the end of the regular season, the Hütteldorfer would be in the top six, maybe even a point or a defeat could be enough. But you don’t want to get involved in arithmetic games, said coach Ferdinand Feldhofer. “We want three points and we will do that,” said the Styrian.
Feldhofer has high hopes for the fans. “We have worked towards a final and dreamed of the moment when we wanted to take this step together in front of our own audience.” The personnel situation also gives confidence – according to Feldhofer almost all players are ready for action. However, captain Maximilian Hofmann has to pass, it is open whether the recently ailing Taxiarchis Fountas will end up with a squad nomination.
Bundesliga, 22nd round
Start 5 p.m.:
Rapid – Klagenfurt
Allianz Stadium, SR Eisner
Possible lineups:
Rapid: Hedl – Stojkovic, Aiwu, K. Wimmer, Moormann – Schick, Petrovic, Grahovac, R. Ljubicic – Druijf, Grüll
Klagenfurt: Menzel – Gkezos, Mahrer, Saravanja, Schumacher – Cvetko, Greil, Gemicibasi – Timossi Andersson, Rep, Jaritz
“We don’t need to talk away the pressure”
Promoted Klagenfurt is one point above the line, so Pacult sees all the pressure on Rapid. “For us it’s a game in which we can only surprise. Rapid has four times the budget of ours and should without a doubt be in the upper play-off due to the financial situation,” said the former Rapid coach. “The pressure at Rapid is enormous.”
Feldhofer is aware of the difficult initial situation. “We don’t need to talk away the pressure. Rapid should win almost every game in Austria, we’re used to that. But we are much younger now and have shown nationally that we can do it, internationally in front of our own audience,” said the ex-team player, referring to the victories in the European Cup at home against Vitesse Arnheim and recently away against WSG Tirol.
Austria with a good starting position
In the fight for the championship group, Vienna Austria is currently looking even better than Rapid. A counter is still needed to fix the big goal on your own. After a year with great financial worries and a weak start to the season, Austria no longer wants to let the big goal be taken away.
“I don’t see a team that’s scared, that’s arrogant. I see a team that is focused and does everything to achieve this goal,” said Austria coach Manfred Schmid on Friday. He himself will not be on the sidelines on Sunday. After a red card in the game against WAC, Schmid was suspended for one game. His assistants Cem Sekerlioglu and Mark McCormick are said to share the task fraternally. Schmid wants to sit in the stands in Maria Enzersdorf.
Bundesliga, 22nd round
Start 5 p.m.:
Admire – Austria
BSFZ-Arena, SR Altmann
Possible lineups:
Admire: Leitner – Zwierschitz, Schmiedl, Bauer, Lukacevic – Ebner, Malicsek – Mustapha, Vodhanel, Ganda – Surdanovic
Austria: Pentz – Martins, Mühl, Handl, Galvao, Suttner – Braunöder, Jukic, Fischer – Grünwald – Ohio
Two points ahead of Rapid and Ried
Fifth-placed Austria are two points ahead of Rapid and Ried, both of whom would have to win their games in Klagenfurt and against Sturm in order to push the “Veilchen” out of the top six in the event of a defeat. But after three wins in a row, nobody in the distribution circle wants to think about that. Schmid announced that they would play to win. “It’s another final for us. The starting position couldn’t be better. But it is dangerous. If you play for one point, it can quickly go wrong,” said the ex-player.
The fact that hardly anything was allowed defensively recently speaks for Austria. 2-0 in Altach, 2-0 against Hartberg, 1-0 against WAC – Patrick Pentz himself made sure that the goal was blocked by saving two penalties against Wolfsberger. U21 team striker Muharem Huskovic is now also available in attack. In midfield, Austria has to change because Eric Martel is a central man who is yellow-locked.
Georg Teigl will probably take a longer break after his serious head injuries. According to the circumstances, the winger is doing well, reported Schmid. “It looks good. He’s in good spirits again.” Many Austria fans have announced that they will be in the BSFZ Arena. In terms of mood, it should be a home game for the favorites. The first duel of the season ended 2-2, Admira is already twelve league games without a win against Austria. In the southern part of the city, the home side suffered three defeats in the last three matches without scoring a goal.
Bundesliga, 22nd round
Start 5 p.m.:
Ried – Storm Graz
josko Arena, SR Weinberger
Possible lineups:
Ried: Sahin-Radlinger – Wießmeier, Meisl, Plavotic, Pomer – Stosic, Ziegl – Bajic, Nutz, Satin – Nene
Sturm: Siebenhandl – Gazibegovic, Affengruber, Wüthrich, Dante – Hierländer, Gorenc-Stankovic, Niangbo, Prass – Jantscher, Höjlund
“Losing prohibited” for Ried
SV Ried cannot afford to lose in the fight for the championship group. With a home win against second-placed Sturm Graz, the Upper Austrians would be in the championship group for the first time, even a draw could be enough in the event of a Rapid defeat. If Robert Ibertsberger’s team loses against Sturm, they end the season in the qualifying group.
The success in the cup semi-final against Hartberg was a mental booster, said Ibertsberger, who also warned. “But it will be a completely different game. Sturm plays a completely different type of football. A lot will be about the first and second balls. If we bring our basic virtues back onto the pitch, we can win this game too,” said Ibertsberger.
“We don’t need to hide”
A look at the “home fortress”, which has so far withstood the onslaught of ten opponents (six wins, four draws), gives the climber from 2020 confidence. With Sturm, however, the second-best away team is a guest. The Grazers have been unbeaten in seven competitive games, the 3-0 win against Hartberg was their first win in 2022.
“We know that Sturm are a very good team. But we don’t need to hide. We’re playing at home in front of our great fans,” said defender Tin Plavotic, who recalled the 2-1 win in the third round of the cup in Graz: “We’ve already shown in the cup that we can beat them. And I am now in a very positive mood that it will work again.”
Bundesliga, 22nd round
Start 5 p.m.:
WAC – LASK
Lavanttal-Arena, SR Lechner
Possible lineups:
WAC: Kofler – Jasic, Gugganig, Lochoshvili, Dedic – Leitgeb – Peretz, Liendl, Taferner – Baribo, Röcher
LASK: Schlager – Potzmann, Boller, Wiesinger, Twardzik – Holland, Michorl – Gruber, Horvath, Goiginger – Raguz
WAC hopes for second place
As teams from two worlds that will soon be separated, WAC and LASK will contest the match on Sunday. The Wolfsbergers are also in the fourth year of the current league format in the top six and could start second and thus better than ever in the championship group if things go well. For LASK, the botched league season continues in the qualifying group.
At least third place (like 2019) is already fixed for the WAC before the league and point division. If the Lavanttalers even want to be the first Salzburg pursuers to start the ten-game championship final, they have to win and Sturm lose in Ried.
Dutt shows respect
“In terms of players, LASK is actually one of the top four teams in Austria. The fact that LASK is not in the master group is certainly a very, very big surprise,” said WAC coach Robin Dutt. A certain disappointment will play a part in the people of Linz, he suspected. “But to what extent it affects performance, I can’t say.”
He prepares his team – again with Mario Leitgeb, but without the suspended Dominik Baumgartner – for the usual rushing action against LASK. “Linz always plays the same. A lot of chasing the ball, a lot of high pressing and trying to come up with quick actions in the penalty area.”
Bundesliga, 22nd round
Start 5 p.m.:
Hartberg-Tyrol
Profertil Arena, SR Jäger
Possible lineups:
Hartberg: Sallinger – Farkas, Steinwender, Sonnleitner, Klem – Kainz, Diarra – Niemann, Heil, Avdijaj – Tadic
WSG: Oswald – Ranacher, Behounek, Stumberger, Schulz – Ertlthaler, Blume, Naschberger, Skrbo – Vrioni, Prica
Hartberg makes a guest appearance in Tyrol
For Hartberg and Tirol, on the other hand, the last regular season duel is a foretaste of the qualifying group. The ninth-placed Styrians are two points ahead of the tenth-placed Watteners, both are aiming for the full number of points in order to be able to start the second phase of the championship motivated.
In any case, Thomas Silberberger does not want one thing in Styria: “Losing is forbidden”, is the motto of the WSG trainer, who demanded at least one point. Only one point came out of the last five games, the last win was on November 27 (3-0 against Altach). “We have to see that we can slowly get going because the regular season was very mixed,” said Silberberger.
But he is not afraid of relegation: “We knew this year that it would be the qualifying round. We have a lot to do everywhere, but we will hold the class. I’m in a positive mood for the next rounds.”
“We lack the sense of achievement”
After a weak spring so far with only one point from three games and the recent exit in the cup semifinals in Ried, Hartberg is struggling with self-confidence. “We finally have to reward ourselves again,” demanded coach Kurt Russ. “We lack the sense of achievement. That is our problem at the moment.”
The focus of the Hartbergers is on seventh place and a participation in the European Cup. Even in the event of a defeat against the WSG, the gap to this position in the qualifying group will be a maximum of four points. “We’re already looking ahead,” said Russ – and a bit backwards: Ideally, the lead over bottom Altach before the 23rd lap on March 12 is six points. “We can set ourselves apart a bit there.”
