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On Sunday at 2.30pm, spusu SKN St. Pölten and Austria will fight in a direct duel for what may be the last chance to intervene in the race for places in the championship round. Those from Lower Austria are currently ninth, one point behind the Viennese. At the same time, RZ Pellets WAC receives the final result Cashpoint SCR Altach.
In the duels between Sturm and Salzburg, Graz could appear significantly changed in terms of personnel. In addition to goalkeeper Jörg Siebenhandl, who has been suspended for a match, ailing Jon Gorenc-Stankovic, Kevin Friesenbichler and Andreas Kuen are questionable. The trio should be saved on Sunday. Otar Kiteishvili will miss the Grazers for four to six weeks due to a torn calf muscle. Salzburg has fewer injuries. The “bulls”, who started with six victories in the spring, will try to overcome the stoppage of the Europa League against Villarreal with national successes.
The first season duel went to Sturm
Also, people in the field of champions are reluctant to remember the first game of the season, which Sturm won 3-1 at Wals-Siezenheim. “We saw how dangerous and efficient they can be. That should be a sufficient warning to us, ”said Salzburg coach Jesse Marsch. The American also saw the enemy under “some pressure. Because with a defeat they would lose contact with the best clubs in the table. “
Typical Bundesliga, 19th round
Sunday, 5 pm:
Storm – Salzburg
Klagenfurt, Wörthersee Stadium
Possible configurations:
Sturm: Schützenauer – Ingolitsch, Nemeth, Wüthrich, Gazibegovic – Hierländer, Jäger, Ljubic, Dante – Balaj, Jantscher
Salzburg: Stankovic – Kristensen, Ramalho, Wöber, Farkas – E. Mwepu, Bernede, Aaronson, Sucic – Daka, Berisha
Almost three years ago, Salzburg suffered one of the few national setbacks in Klagenfurt. Sturm won the 2018 Cup final in extra time thanks to a 1-0 goal from Stefan Hierländer. Of course, the Styrians would have liked to play in their local stadium. The turf conditions were unacceptable to the league. “It is positive that we play Sturm on a field that is also suitable for the Bundesliga,” said Salzburg defender Maximilian Wöber.
The team player also found it unusual for Salzburg to face the same league and cup rival in a few days, as they did a few weeks ago against Austria. “You could almost think it’s the European Cup,” said Wöber.
Ilzer has to improvise
Sturm coach Christian Ilzer has to improvise. Instead of Siebenhandl, Tobias Schützenauer starts at the door. The 23-year-old has made five appearances in the first division so far. Kelvin Yeboah will probably sit on the bench. The forward hired by Wattens still needs “time and patience,” Ilzer said. Regarding the squad, the coach said: “We will definitely bring a very good team to the field on Sunday.” It seemed that no risk was taken with the sick players.
Salzburg is still a superior team, Ilzer said. “They will keep us extremely busy, so we have to counter that. But surely it will be necessary for us to have phases of more than 90 minutes in which we pose problems for Salzburg ”. Ilzer did not cry after the home advantage, which was already manageable due to the pandemic. “Currently a regular soccer game is not possible. That would be irresponsible for our team and also for Salzburg, ”he said of the ground conditions in Graz.
More recently, moments of success for St. Pölten and Austria
Before the game at the NV Arena, both St. Pölten and Austria had moments of success. The Austrian casualties left the field as 1-0 winners after seven winless games in Innsbruck against WSG Tirol, while the Viennese beat Altach 5-1 after five goals in the second half of the match. Peter Stöger wants to follow up on this, and not on the poor performance of the first 45 minutes. “We look forward to seeing more and more of our good game,” said the Austria manager.
Typical Bundesliga, 19th round
Saturday, 2.30 pm:
St. Pölten – Austria
NV Arena
Possible configurations:
St. Pölten: Riegler – Blauensteiner, Steinwender, Muhamedbegovic, Schulz – Tursch, Pokorny, R. Ljubicic – Davies, Schmidt, Hugi
Austria: Pentz – Teigl, Handl, Schösswendter, Wimmer – Martel – Sarkaria, Jukic, Fitz – Pichler, Monschein
There are still four rounds to play to get to the top six. “On paper we may even have the toughest opponents, but I think each club has it in their own hands,” said Stöger. Postscript: “SKN St. Pölten knows it too.” The yellow-blue “Wolves” are four points from the Wattener. Stöger announced that he would seek the attack with his team. “We will definitely play offensively.”
St. Pölten wants to build stability
St. Pölten have been undefeated against Austria in five league games, four of which have been drawn. As SKN’s head coach, Robert Ibertsberger wrote to his former employer at all four meetings. The championship round is definitely not a problem for Lower Austria. “We shouldn’t start dreaming of anything after a win,” Ibertsberger emphasized. At the moment, it is important to create stability and continuity. “We will see what we can see after 22 rounds and now we will think from game to game,” Ibertsberger said.
Austria performed well in many phases of the spring, the St. Pölten coach noted. “He has developed some offensive power. It is important to counteract this ”. Dor Hugi and George Davies, who had only come off shore in Tyrol for tactical reasons, were able to start over in a three-way attack. Daniel Luxbacher is banned, but already mistreated.
WAC only in two “weddings”
Damir Canadi’s return as Altach coach is on the show at Wolfsberg’s Lavanttal Arena. Therefore, WAC coach Ferdinand Feldhofer has nothing to do with tactics and personnel for Vorarlberg guests. “It will definitely be a completely different team from the last few weeks,” said the Styrian. Feldhofer described Canadi as an “experienced coach. What he has accomplished at Atromitos is impressive. But that doesn’t change the fact that our goal has to be to deliver a top-notch game despite the high loads, ”said the former team player.
Typical Bundesliga, 19th round
Saturday, 2.30 pm:
WAC – Altach
Lavanttal-Arena
Possible configurations:
WAC: Kofler – Novak, Baumgartner, Henriksson, Scherzer – Taferner, Stratznig, Liendl, Wernitznig – Vizinger, Joveljic
Altach: Kobras – Oum Gouet, Anderson, Subotic, Edokpolor – Casar, Haudum, Fischer – Meilinger, Obasi, Schreiner
The Carinthians have already played ten competitive games this year, four more than Altach. Due to the clearance in the Europa League against Tottenham – after a 0: 4 on Wednesday in London with a total of 1: 8 – the international business is already lost, the Carinthians only dance in two “weddings”. Feldhofer: “We were proud to have spent the winter in three competitions and we would have liked to be promoted to Tottenham. Now we have to focus on the remaining two competitions, ”said Feldhofer.
In the league, they recently reached fifth place with two 2-1 wins and have the best entries for a championship ticket. In Wednesday’s cup at home against LASK it is all about reaching the final. “This is a very important match for us, but it is not above the match against Altach, because we want to secure our place in the top six as soon as possible. Our aim is to get through next week in terms of results and injuries as well as possible, ”explained Feldhofer.
Altach expects a coach effect
For Altach, however, it is important to stop a negative three-game winless trend with Canadi. Only the second win in the last eight rounds is being considered. “I would like to see the mentality that we are going there to take something,” emphasized the Altach neo-coach. So being compact on defense is not enough for him. “I also hope that we are present at the front, that we take the pressure off, that we are active,” Canadi said.
His impressions of the few training sessions so far give him confidence. “There is a new spirit, everyone is trying to prove themselves. I think the team has good potential, it gives me the feeling that it can work and that’s a lot of fun for me, ”said the Vorarlberg resident. He did not disclose details about staff and management. The truth is that in addition to the injured captain Philipp Netzer, the suspended Emir Karic and Daniel Maderner are not a problem. “I hope to find the right players to take away all three points from Wolfsberg,” Canadi said.
