Hartberg opens the round of 16 match against Lustenau

With four wins from five matches and a move to sixth place in the Bundesliga, Manfred Schmid's reign as coach of TSV Hartberg began with great success.

On Tuesday (from 7pm on the live stream >>>), the 53-year-old and his new club will be tested for the first time in the Austrian FA Cup. At the start of the round of 16, Styria hosts former Oberhaus club Austria Lustenau in Bregenz, who are yet to lose in the second league after being relegated in the summer.

However, this result does not cause much euphoria among Vorarlberger, especially since the number of points and table standings do not live up to expectations. Only three out of 11 matches have been won this season, compared to eight draws, and the eighth is the undisputed king of draws in the league.

Hartberg Migic is at the top of his game

The big trump card for 38-year-old Martin Brenner's side is defence. Only six goals were conceded and no goals were scored six times. At cup level, after the opening win over regional league team Vals-Gronau (2:1), league rival Admira (3:1) was again defeated away from home.

Hartberg had an easier match and showed no weaknesses against Bischofshofen (11:1) and Lafnitz (6:0). Now the second division team follows the second. “Now we continue to compete in the cup, and we want to win against Lustenau again,” said striker Patrik Migic, setting the tone.

The 25-year-old Croatian has scored five goals in the cup and league, in a total of twelve competitive appearances. The striker, who arrived from Slovenian club NK Rogaška in the summer, has made a huge impact. “I'm doing what the coach expects from me. Things are going well at the moment. I'm happy with my goals, but the most important thing is that we win games.”

Three matches in the German League on Wednesday

Last year, TSV failed on penalties to Salzburg in a thrilling round of 16, and Lustenau has not gone beyond the round of 16 since participating in the final in 2020.

Ten other top-flight teams will participate on Wednesday. With Red Bull Salzburg against WSG Tirol, WAC against Austria Klagenfurt and defending champion Sturm Graz against Blau-Weiß Linz, there will be live Bundesliga clashes in three ties (each from 8:30pm on the live stream).

The remaining Senators representatives compete against second division teams away from home. Rapid competes in Hohe Warte against Stripfing (Live Tape >>>), and local rivals Austria in Hoorn and Lusk in Voitsberg (both from 6.15pm on LIVE Tape). GAK will also compete against Schwarz-Weiß Bregenz in Vorarlberg (from 7pm on LIVE).