Storm guest at WAC

A top-tier player awaits WAC in their first Bundesliga match of the season. On Saturday (7.30 p.m.), SK Sturm football runner-up SK Sturm will be a guest guest at the Lavanttal Arena. “We have to get to the point very quickly,” Graz coach Christian Elzer demanded. But the Grazers are missing veteran Jacob Guncher. Torn muscle fibers force him to take a break. In the second game of the day (5pm) LASK wants to forget last season against Austria Klagenfurt.

“We will adapt as much as possible to the program, which we cannot influence in any way,” Elzer said. The preparations were very intense and made a clear highlight with the 2-1 victory in a friendly match against Galatasaray Istanbul. “This was our best match including the championship group. We kept our strength, we found very good solutions with and without the ball and we carried out most of the plan,” said the coach. It is essential for him that “the team reaches its maximum and shows hunger. Especially in the Bundesliga, we are facing challenges to improve.”

At WAC, on the other hand, there was a major turmoil after the pre-season, which finished in fourth place. Not only did divorced director Michael Lendl, who resigned after four years and moved to the second tier of GAK, but also goalkeepers Alexander Kovler, Christopher Wernitznigg, Sven Spangler, Eliel Peretz and Joram Gurbelidze. In addition to the loaned players who had to return to their original clubs, a total of ten professionals left the club. That corresponds to eight newcomers.

The coach remained the same. Robin Dott must now put together a new team. “At least we’ve gone through all the topics in the setup. It remains to be seen where we end up standing,” said the German, who also worked with the system change and used a three-man defense. Another thing.” If necessary, you can immediately switch to the back quadrant: “Everyone can do it.”

At LASK, coach Dietmar Koebauer, who took charge in the league final, promised to improve after eighth place. With the squad also changed in terms of personnel, but at the moment without a king transfer from Robert Zolge, the top six are the obvious target. The climber from Carinthia had landed there abruptly.

For Kühbauer, Klagenfurt shouldn’t be taken more seriously than last season. “It wouldn’t be helpful to say, they lost good players,” Kohbauer said. “We’ve also lost good players” in connection with the departures of Andreas Gruber, James Holland, Petar Filipovic or Marco Ragoz, who of course have rarely played in recent times, Burgenlander said.

The recent 9-1 victory in the cup over third-division Schauz showed that new deals weren’t bad. Striker Marin Ljubicic has tied a triple bundle, indicating that the last malignant storm lull may be over. Former defender Filip Stojkovic also scored a goal against Schwaz. And at the center of the defence, German Philippe Zerse already looks set. “We have good new deals, the atmosphere is very good,” said Kohbauer, happy before the start.

Klagenfurt arrived with an 8:1 win recommendation in the Cup on the third division Admira Dornbirn. Leaving the pillars Patrick Grill, Torgy Gimbassi and Alex Timosey Anderson seems to be absorbable. “We were there from the first minute,” said coach Peter Bacolt, whose team drew 0-0 with Southampton on Monday. “We had very good transitional moments, the rooms that were offered to us were very well used and very well used.”

In any case, striker Andrew Irving is also an option against LASK, and the Scotsman’s work permit arrived on Friday. “We are definitely entering the season with a positive feeling,” Bacolt said.