Von Harald Ottawa Alexander Roof
02.04.2024
After the victory at Sturm Graz, the champions have all the trump cards to defend their title.
With the victory over Sturm Graz, their first pursuer, champions Salzburg have taken a big step towards defending their title. Maybe it’s already a preliminary decision. With a five point lead over Sturm Graz and ten over LASK, it is now easier to play in the spring. With the time change, a new, old era has begun again in the league.
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Preparation time
In the past three seasons, the bulls also grazed at international level after the winter break. Although the multiple stresses never lasted long, they did last briefly. This year they were able to concentrate entirely on the league, while Sturm had four European Cup games and therefore English weeks under their belt.
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Dominance in the finish
When it came down to it, when the decisive phase came, Salzburg were a class better than their opponents thanks to the broader squad. Since the introduction of the championship group (2018), there have only been three defeats in five years. One of them was against Sturm on April 27, 2022, but they won all of the remaining nine (!) games against Graz. The balance in the championship groups including the games so far this season: 52 games, 40 wins and three defeats.
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The routine and calm
Ten championship titles in a row – in Salzburg we already know how it works. In Europe, only Bayern have been more successful recently (eleven championship titles in a row) – but this series will break. In Salzburg you focus on sport, you don’t need to look sideways at your competitors.
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The attack
Salzburg have already scored 26 striker goals, while Graz have scored 15 so far. And four of them were scored by Manprit Sarkaria, who is out until the end of the season due to a broken ankle. When it comes to the number of goal scorers, however, there are hardly any differences. Salzburg had 14 different shooters this season and Sturm had 13 different shooters. Overall, Salzburg scored ten times more often (51).
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The competition
The reactions of the Sturm players and coach Christian Ilzer after the 0-1 defeat were emotional. Although Ilzer assured that they would fight bravely until the end, he also realistically admitted: “It was a groundbreaking victory for Salzburg.” It was noticeable to the Grazers that the lack of reward for their hard work particularly hurt them.
The momentum
At least now it’s on Salzburg’s side. Sturm has to hope that the master will fall over and at the same time must not expose himself. It’s not that the people from Graz don’t have the quality to do it, but the pressure on the psyche increases from round to round.
There will be a reunion in the cup semi-finals on Thursday. For Sturm, reaching the final wouldn’t just be good for the mood.
2024-04-02 03:00:00
#Master #Salzburg #annoys #pursuers
