“A slap in the face”

The Rapids’ international season ended Thursday with a Europa League group stage exit, and with the bitter aftertaste that more would have been possible. The 2: 2 at Allianz Stadium against Molde was not enough for promotion to the sixteenth final, while the Norwegians would have been within their grasp in the fight for second place behind Arsenal, said coach Dietmar Kühbauer.

“We are at the same level as Molde,” said the 49-year-old. “They are not one bit better than us, but they did better than us in both games.” At 0: 1 in the first game in Norway in October, Rapid disappointed across the board, and the performance wasn’t good enough in the second clash either.

The disaster started from the beginning with the first goal conceded in the twelfth minute. “We completely lacked peace in the first half hour,” Kühbauer said. “We have lost practically all the duels and we have barely produced anything productive.”

In the final phase of the first half, the situation changed due to the equalization of Marcel Ritzmaier, so optimism remained high at halftime. “During halftime we said two goals were possible. And then we came out of the locker room and stabbed ourselves in the heart,” Kühbauer said, referring to Magnus Wolff Eikrem’s second goal about 20 seconds after the restart.

Thorsten Schick: “It was a punch in the face”

Thorsten Schick also found drastic words for the decisive moment after the break: “Towards the end of the first half we were very good on the inside, then in the dressing room we decided that we were not going to score a goal. And then we were hit so quickly in the face.” , so Schick in Puls4.

The expected quick equalization was unsuccessful, although they tried hard. “We did well, but good behavior is not enough internationally,” summarized Kühbauer.

Unlike in 2018, when the Burgenlander advanced to the Europa League knockout stage with Rapid, Rapid will not be spending the winter in the European Cup this time. Kühbauer: “You only have to play at a very high level in six games. It is not enough, as sometimes in Austria, and I do not mean it in a derogatory way, if you slow down a little. Internationally, the duels are carried out in way different from the national one. “

Kühbauer: “There are much worse things”

Despite the disappointment at the departure, the Burgenlander was far from spreading a climate of catastrophe. “There are much worse things,” emphasized Kühbauer in relation to the European Cup. “He’ll give us an easy one, but we’ll get up again, I’m not worried about that.”

The coach refrained from harshly criticizing his players. “We are far from questioning everything,” Kühbauer said, adding: “It doesn’t help if you massacre yourself. We now have Wattens in front of the door and we will do everything we can to get a three.”

WSG Tirol will play at the Allianz Stadium on Sunday, and on Wednesday the hit in the round of 16 of the ÖFB Cup against Red Bull Salzburg is scheduled in Wals-Siezenheim. At the end of the year, they will face Admira away from home on December 19, after which Rapid can look back on eight weeks in English from mid-September.

Europa League Group B: The table