German Bundesliga: Storm hits Altach with tailwinds

The sure-fire win at Lavantal was certainly a good thing for Sturm after their 3-1 defeat early in the season against Red Bull Salzburg. “Especially in the first half it was a great performance,” said coach Christian Elzer, who wants to see “the determination and good running paths that distinguished us against Wydad again” against Altach. The coach expects a difficult task for Jörg Siebenhandl and Co.

“After the unfortunate narrow defeat against LASK (0:1), the away win at Hartberg (2:1) definitely gave them self-confidence,” Ilzer said. “We must be fully awake, Altas are a dangerous opponent. They will try to make our spaces tight, they will have a high quality by standards and with Atdhe Nuhiu an experienced striker. All in all an unpleasant opponent,” said Styria.

Sturm for Altach “Clear Favorites”

His Altach counterpart, Damir Kennedy, emphasized the increased chest size of his troops. However, the Viennese were aware that the candidates in Graz needed a “perfect performance from us”. In order to maintain their strength, they traveled to Salzburg on Thursday, from where they went to Graz after a final training session on Friday. “We will try once again to implement our ideas and we want to be present in the attack,” Al-Kindi pledged.

“I expect my team to take the next step. Of course, Sturm is the favorite, but we will look for our chances and want to take something with us.” However, Altach is one of Sturm’s favorite opponents, especially in Graz, where Vorarlberg played only one of the 17 matches (2): 1 on December 8, 2019) won.

In the case of Sturm, it is unclear whether Ilzer can and wants to undo key player Jakob Jantscher. There is still a question mark after an Achilles injury behind the veteran’s use of the four-point lead against the Carinthian side. In regards to the Europa League playoff, which begins in a week and a half, one can be cautious in Jantscher – even if the 32-year-old takes part in part of the team’s training again on Thursday.

Weakened Klagenfurt and Hartburg

Before the duel, Austria from Klagenfurt and Hartburg also suffer from employee concerns. Peter Bacolt must rebuild the Carinthian defense after being suspended. Austria has yet to play a full league match this season. With Captains Cosmas Gekizos and Nicholas Wimmer, two representatives were again sent off the field after the VAR intervened. Goalkeeper Rene Sweet misses Styria and central defender Felix Lokender’s spread becomes a race against time.

Pacult experimented with different methods of defense, but did not consider his cards beforehand regarding his formation. “Of course it’s always bitter when some players fail, but that opens the door for others. If the opportunity presents itself, you have to take it,” said Pault. A 4-0 draw against Admira was evident in the end. “It is important that we shake ourselves up, get up and prepare to show the right reaction. I expect that.”

It’s hard to rate Klagenfurt for Ross

For Hartburg coach Kurt Ross, Klagenfurt’s strength is “hard to classify”. However, he expected the newcomer to be “more defensive”. “They didn’t go down front even in the promotion season where they scored their goals by changing positions.”

Hartberg recently lost to the Altach 1:2 through “dumb mistakes,” Ross asserted. In the offensive game, Marcus Schaub’s successor wants to bring more players into the penalty area. “And running to pole one is still getting better.” The confrontation has only happened twice in history. In 2016/17, both teams celebrated their home win in the regional league.

Admira talks about “show collar”

With Ried and Admira, two teams will meet on target in terms of points. Admira, who is undefeated under Andreas Herzog, defends one point more at Invertel than Rieder, who has three. Upper Austria does not want to be bothered by the recent 7-1 defeat in Salzburg. “The match is no longer a problem. On the first day I mentioned some things that we could have done better,” said RED coach Andreas Heraf.

Herraf confirmed that the victory over Austria is in a good position in the table for the time being. “Now we have Admira in front of us, she has the size of our collar. We can beat anyone in the league except for Salzburg. That’s how we’re going to deal with it.” Südstädter started with a 1-1 draw in Tirol, only to break up Austria’s Klagenfurt 4-0 shortly thereafter.

Herzog hopes for the process of maturation

But only in the final stage and with two other men. “I told the boys our match against Klagenfurt was good and nice, but it didn’t matter anymore,” Herzog said. They also want to get three points in RED. In Invertel, Maria Enzersdorfer last won on May 29, 2003 (3-0). “We’ll see if the boys can actually complete the next maturation process,” Herzog said. Defense chief Niko Datkovic is still missing due to knee issues.

Reid have played six home matches and are thus still undefeated under Herav. Herzog: “We know that Reed is a very well organized team, and some of them are waiting for the opponent to make mistakes.” The matches in the previous season ended evenly. Both teams celebrated their respective wins, and there was also a two-point split, the latest of which was a 0-0 win at Reed.