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There were no surprises before departure. “All the tests were negative,” reported Rapid coach Dietmar Kühbauer. Postscript: “The only thing that should be positive now is the outcome of the game.” You will “do your best” to write to Group B for the first time.
“We are looking forward to the match with Molde and we want to take all three points,” captain Dejan Ljubicic said. Unlike Rapid, last year’s Norwegian champions won their first game, despite a 0-1 at halftime, Irish representative Dundalk managed a 2-1 victory.
Fast in Norway under pressure
Rapid must score points with the Norwegian champions in the Europa League game on Thursday to stay in touch with the early promotion ranks.
Kühbauer expects “close game”
“They are good opponents, it will be a close match. I think they are a very strong team. They rarely play with long balls and prefer to show their quality of play, ”said Kühbauer and cautioned against Molde FK lightly. “Everyone has to re-convene the function as in the last weeks, only then can you see something accounting.”
Kühbauer is convinced that his players are capable of this. “We have absolutely grown in the playing area,” said the Rapid coach. “It will be an open game. The team that wants more will leave the field as the winner ”. The “bubble” atmosphere that the Hütteldorfer has been in since Tuesday due to strict Norwegian regulations should not be an obstacle.
Europa League, Group B
Thursday, 9 pm:
Mold – Fast
Molde, Aker-Stadion, SR Ardeleanu (CZE)
Constellations:
Mold: Linde – Wingo, Björnbak, Gregersen, Haugen – Aursnes, Eikrem, Ellingsen – Hestad, Omoijuanfo, Brynhildsen
Quick: Gartler – Stojkovic, Greiml, Barac, .Ullmann – D. Ritzmaier – Kara Ljubitzic, Grahovac, Schick, Kitagawa, Kara
“It is not easy because it is a completely new situation for all of us. Guys take it well. That shouldn’t distract us from the game, ”Kühbauer said. The green-whites also have to adapt to a new subway. “That is guaranteed to be a little advantage for Molde, because they always have this artificial grass,” Kühbauer said. “It’s definitely a disadvantage for us.”
Fountas failure hurts
In addition, with the exception of the Arsenal game, Rapidler, who remains unbeaten this season, has to do without a key player: forward Taxiarchis Fountas is out due to a metacarpal bone fracture he suffered in the first group stage game against the Arsenal. “The taxi is a bitter waste,” Kühbauer said of his protégé.
Koya Kitagawa had already represented Fountas well at Wolfsberg. Basically, there was praise for the Japanese: “You can see that he is integrating more and more into the team day by day.” In addition to Fountas, Yusuf Demir is still missing from Team Rapid. The 17-year-old is awaiting the result of his next coronavirus test, as Kühbauer explained in an interview with Rapid-TV.
