“It’s not going so easy for us at the moment,” admitted Salzburg’s sporting director Christoph Freund. A week after the meager home 3: 3 against Vienna Austria and the subsequent criticism from the club officials, the “Bulls” lacked the naturalness in the game despite more engagements. Meanwhile, Sturm’s coach Christian Ilzer smells a rat: “It’s ready for a top game. Our stadium will be bursting at the seams. We are very close.”
“You have to pay a big compliment to LASK, who defended almost everything with enormous passion,” said coach Matthias Jaissle and also looked for the explanation for the third home draw in a row with the opponent, who, especially in the first half, created useful opportunities with quick switching actions came. Shortly before the break, Salzburg missed Benjamin Sesko’s huge chance to make it 1-0 and only got into the game better after a change of sides with a more direct approach. LASK started to swim in the finish, but the hosts did not manage to score.
Bundesliga: title fight comes to a head
In the Bundesliga, the title fight between Salzburg and Sturm Graz is getting more and more intense. After the series champions drew against LASK and the Styrians won in Klagenfurt, both teams are only separated by two points before the summit next weekend.
“The effectiveness was missing”
“Unfortunately, the team was not rewarded for their efforts in the end. We wanted to be more agile and present for larger parts of the game, and there was a lack of effectiveness,” said Jaissle. “The problem is that we don’t take our chances, which makes every game more difficult and tighter, every game is a challenge,” said Freund.
Salzburg draw against LASK
Austria’s serial champion Red Bull Salzburg has had to accept the next loss of points in the championship group of the Admiral Bundesliga. A week after the 3:3 at home against Wiener Austria, it was only enough for a 0:0 against LASK in front of their own audience on Sunday.
Goalie Philipp Köhn went in search of the positive aspects. “We kept the zero and defensively worked the way it should be,” said the Swiss. Freund, who had held a booth sermon the previous week, said he was reconciled. “The team tried everything in the second half, there are such phases in football,” explained the 45-year-old. As before, however, “everyone is required”. “On Sunday it will be a real challenge and a real fight.”
Köhn was also aware of the coming challenge. After all, his team against Sturm has been without a win for four games or March 13, 2022. In the current season there was a 1:2 defeat in Graz and a 1:1 in Wals-Siezenheim in the league. “We’re looking forward to this direct duel and are still two points ahead. We want to win in Graz and show what performance we are capable of,” said Köhn aggressively.
“Madhouse” expected in Graz
In the Styrian capital, a sold-out madhouse is to be expected, and even in front of a meager atmosphere in Klagenfurt, Sturm were driven by the supporters to a deserved 2-0 win after a weak first half. “We came to Klagenfurt with a defeat, and if you just want to stay close to Salzburg you should almost never lose in a season. That’s what’s going on in my head, it’s also paralyzing and makes it so difficult,” said Christian Ilzer, outlining the difficult starting position before the Wörthersee trip.
Storm wins in Klagenfurt
Puntigamer Sturm Graz showed a reaction to the 1:2 against LASK and won a deserved 2:0 in Klagenfurt. Tomi Horvat (63′) and Jusuf Gazibegovic (92′) scored the goals in a game dominated by VAR checks, in which the Styrians struggled for a long time and missed a penalty through Otar Kiteishvili (57′).
The people of Graz are now careful not to use Sunday as a title decision. “We have to make sure it’s a normal game for us, not something special. There are still six games to go, and not everything will be decided on Sunday,” warned Jon Gorenc-Stankovic. One tries to talk away the championship duel “of course and to focus on the things that we can control,” emphasized Ilzer, but: “In the end, the result and the table always haunt us. You hear ‘Salzburg’ and ‘Table’ in every second sentence in every interview – of course the players have that in their heads as well.”
Salzburg “reachable” for storm
Salzburg’s tenth championship title in a row is at least shaky. “They are available for us,” stated Ilzer. Jaissle is probably aware of that. “It will be a challenge for the coaching team to prepare this young team mentally so that they can survive in Graz,” said the 35-year-old about the coming days. The young coach wants to give his players, most of whom are much younger, “courage and trust” “so that they can bring the necessary ease back onto the pitch in Graz”.
Jaissle may then be missing the ailing veteran Andreas Ulmer, who had to leave the field at the break against LASK. In addition, striker Noah Okafor, who was substituted again as a “joker” in the finish, suffered a metatarsal fracture and will be out for the rest of the season. “Unfortunately, we have additional injuries again, but we will mobilize all forces,” affirmed Jaissle. At Sturm, however, defender Gregory Wüthrich made his comeback after a calf injury in the finish on Sunday.
