Bundesliga: Salzburg expects “fight” against Austria

Only four days after their cup duel, Salzburg and Austria meet again in the league. “It’s a bit of a strange situation against the same opponent in two competitions. We have to be prepared for a strong fight, ”said Salzburg coach Jesse Marsch. We also have to be prepared for them to be more aggressive than Cupdell, and we are prepared for both scenarios. “

Goalkeeper Cican Stankovic spoke of a “perfect start” to the spring. “It may not be that spectacular, but the victories were very impressive and in the end the points count. So we are very difficult to break, ”said the team’s goalkeeper. Austria failed to do this too often in the past anyway: in the last 23 Bundesliga duels with the series champions, the Viennese left the field as winners only twice and suffered 15 losses, some of them significant.

Austria wants to develop a “momentum”

Violets now seek happiness again in Wals-Siezenheim. Even if Peter Stöger didn’t have two straight away games in Salzburg on his “Christmas wish list”, as he put it. As seventh, Austria is fighting for the jump to the championship group, which requires a significant increase in points. “If you set something up as a point scenario, then three points are not planned. But we approach it in such a way that we can offer a surprise, “said Stöger.

His team’s starting position is almost similar to that of the cup. Austria want to play bravely, with a solid defense and punctures on offense. “You need the momentum, but you have to work to get it,” Stöger said. On defense, however, not everything could be avoided, aiming for the 0-2 on Saturday. The fact that Austria is acting too vague and often hasty in its counterattacks remains a problem area that Stöger and Co. still has to work on.

Stöger draws confidence from the team structure developed for the upcoming tasks. “Take small steps forward” is their motto. On Monday Austria brought back Andreas Poulsen on loan from Mönchengladbach by the injured Markus Suttner. The left back could be there on Wednesday. Marco Djuricin would also be a candidate for the post. The use of Aleksandar Jukic is questionable due to a bruise suffered in the cup, Christoph Monschein is not yet in team training.

LASK is a guest on the favorite opponent

Before that, LASK, fourth in the table, will visit St. Pölten. Those from Lower Austria in eighth place are Upper Austria’s absolute favorite rivals: LASK have been undefeated in eleven Bundesliga games with SKN and celebrated eight victories. More recently, he even scored four suite losses for coach Robert Ibertsberger’s team.

However, the Linzers cautioned against taking the game lightly, with a 3-0 win at the WAC on January 27 in the last five Bundesliga rounds (with one draw and three losses). “St. Pölten has shown that they can play football very well. If we do not achieve 100 percent on the pitch, it will not be a sure success,” emphasized striker Husein Balic, who scored twice as a “joker” in the difficult 5-3 home win after extra time in the Cup quarter-finals against second-division Austria Klagenfurt on Sunday.

SKN have not won since 4-0 on December 5 at Altach, at home even since 4-0 on October 31 against the promoted Ried. They are currently five points missing in sixth place in the table, which entitles them to participate in the championship round. “We have done a lot of mental work in the last week and clearly we have addressed some things. The point is that we have to remedy the individual mistakes of the last matches, which have repeatedly led us to difficulties and cost us points, and we have to find our defensive stability, ”said Ibertsberger, similar to Thalhammer.

Duel in the basement in the southern part of the city.

In the basement duel, Admira aims to jump from the bottom of the table. If Südstädter score the expected three points in the home game against SCR Altach, they will pass the red lantern to the guests of Vorarlberg. They recently had their sense of accomplishment with a 2-1 home win over SK Puntigamer Sturm Graz. Coach Alex Pastoor therefore made a demand: “The players must show that it was not a flash in the pan.”

Altach also made headlines with the newcomers. Argentine forward Danilo Carando won’t be seen in Maria Enzersdorf any more than central defender Neven Subotic. Both are still behind in training, as Pastoor reported. The Dutchman expects a sustainable increase in quality from the duo experienced throughout the season. The Altach coach did not want to give too much importance to the game. “Tomorrow’s game does not decide the season,” he said.

Turbulent duel from the first season

Altach’s team won the first season comparison after an exchange of blows with a total of three red cards 4-2. Before the success, however, the Rheindorfer had left the field seven times in a row without beating Admira. The Südstadters would also like to do a trio with them on Wednesday. The latest addition will also be lost. Max Sax, who was brought over from Austria, is still not quite fit after sustaining an injury from the Viennese. The use of Maximilian Breunig (thigh) and Marcus Maier (metacarpal fracture) is questionable.

In terms of quality, manager Damir Buric did not place Altach in the penultimate place of the table. “But they have problems and they are left behind. We want to take advantage of that and play our game, ”said the Croatian. He expected a duel characterized by tactics and duels and announced: “We are totally focused.”