ADMIRAL Bundesliga Matchday 25 Reviews

Qualification Round

LASK 0-2 SV Guntamatic Ried

SV Ried regained top spot in the group after success in a snowy Upper Austrian derby. The hosts got off to a nightmare start following Yannis Letard’s header into his own net after just four minutes. That’s the first time Ried have profited from an own goal in a Bundesliga derby. Letard’s day went from bad to worse as he was sent off for a collision in the area inside 15 minutes, but Alexander Schlager incredibly saved both the initial spot kick from Julian Wiessmeier and the retake to keep LASK in the game. Soon after though, Stefan Nutz got assist number 12 of a stellar season when he delivered a ball in for Marcel Ziegl to head home his first goal of the campaign. That all happened in the first 20 minutes, but Ried never looked like letting LASK back into the game, and they leapfrog their hosts to sit top of the Qualification Round table.

TSV Egger Glas Hartberg 0-1 WSG Tirol

WSG Tirol inflicted a second defeat on Hartberg in just four weeks, following a decisive early strike from Sandi Ogrinec. The young Slovenian was making his fifth appearance in the Bundesliga, and with his first shot on target he opened the scoring eight minutes in, slotting home nicely from a Kofi Schulz pass after a slick move down the left from the visitors. Despite having only 39% of the ball, WSG Tirol amassed 19 shots in the game, nine more than their hosts, and thanks to a game-high six clearances from Raffael Behounek, they held on for a much-needed win. Six of the eight Bundesliga points that WSG Tirol have picked up since the end of November have now come against TSV Hartberg. The teams switched places with that result, WSG are fourth; Hartberg fifth.

CASHPOINT SCR Altach 2-2 FC Flyeralarm Admira

Altach fought back from two goals down at home to claim what could be a pivotal point in the relegation battle on Saturday. It wasn’t looking good for the goal-shy Vorarlbergers when Ange Nanizayamo sliced into his own net on the verge of half time, and when goalkeeper Tino Casali left the ball exposed for Stefano Surdanovic to tap-in his first Bundesliga goal just after the break, Altach fans could have been forgiven for thinking their team were as good as out of the contest. The hosts stuck to their task though, and when Christoph Monschein coolly chipped a penalty kick down the middle for his second in two matches, it was game on. In driving sleet and snow, the battle for an equaliser lasted until the 96th minute, when a heavily deflected strike from Austria U21 player Felix Strauss levelled up for Altach and crucially kept Ludo Magnin’s side in touch at the bottom of the table.

Championship Round

FK Austria Vienna 1-1 SK Austria Klagenfurt

The clash of the Bundesliga’s two Austrias ended all-square on Sunday, after hosts FK Austria fought back for a deserved point against their Carinthian visitors. Florian Jaritz put the guests ahead with his first Bundesliga goal, sweeping home a loose ball in the box after 28 minutes, but from then on, much of the play went the way of the hosts. With 16 shots to six, and 66% of the possession, it was perhaps no surprise that Marco Djuricin levelled things up in the second half for Austria Vienna. He’s well and truly back in the goals now, after netting three in his last three appearances, a feat he hadn’t managed since back in 2014 when he played for Sturm Graz. Both managers shared a warm exchange at the full time whistle; Klagenfurt secured their first point of the Championship Group, Austria Vienna remain unbeaten in the league in 2022.

RZ Pellets WAC 0-2 SK Puntigamer Sturm Graz

Wolfsberg’s excellent record at the Lavanttal Arena took a knock on Sunday afternoon, as Sturm inflicted a second straight Bundesliga home defeat on Robin Dutt’s side. After a back-and-forth opening phase, Alexander Prass got his fourth assist of the season when he set up Manprit Sarkaria to fire in low at the near post. Attacking midfielder Sarkaria has quietly gone about amassing 11 goals this season, as many as he managed in four seasons combined at Austria Vienna, but he also added a fourth assist to his tally when he found Rasmus Höjlund in space in the WAC area shortly after the interval. That was goal number five in seven Bundesliga appearances for the young Dane, marking an excellent start to his time in Austria. Sturm are Salzburg’s nearest challengers in second place, Wolfsberg are fifth.

FC Red Bull Salzburg 2-1 SK Rapid Vienna

Rapid came agonisingly close to taking a point from their trip to Salzburg, but in the end Zlatko Junuzovic - who was heralded by the home fans before kick off - made the difference. After pushing hard for an opener, and seeing chances missed by Junior Adamu and Noah Okafor, Salzburg got their breakthrough thanks to a dipping long range hit from Luka Sucic inside 20 minutes. That was a fourth Bundesliga goal for the Croatian teenager, and two of those have come from distance. Rapid fought back admirably though, and their defensive efforts were rewarded when Ferdy Druijf pounced in the box to snap up a rare chance and equalise at 1-1 early in the second half. That was a second league goal from Rapid’s winter loan signing, and it looked for a long time as though it would earn the guests a point, and break their losing streak in Salzburg. Normal service was resumed in stoppage time however, when a cross was blocked into the path of Junuzovic, who had no trouble sealing the win from close range. It was his 42nd Bundesliga strike, and strangely, his first ever as a substitute. Salzburg stay 12 points clear at the top, Rapid are in fourth.