New trainer? “Rapid won’t play like Salzburg” – football
On Sunday everything in Vienna revolves around football again. The 334th Vienna Derby between Rapid and Austria is on the program.
The “Veilchen” go into the duel with their green and white arch rivals with a broad chest. In seventh place in the table, Manfred Schmid’s team is ahead of the Hütteldorfer with equal points. And in the new Allianz Stadium there have been no defeats in seven games, the Austria won three and four draws.
Nothing should change in this balance sheet, at least if Coach Schmid has his way. Although Schmid emphasized: “For us this is statistics, it may affect the Rapid players.” At the same time, the 50-year-old was self-confident: “The win against Sturm gave us confidence. The atmosphere is great. We really want to win.”
Draw series
But it is also clear: the last four duels all ended in a draw. “Nobody wants to lose. We want to put the opponent under pressure, but it is also important that you have a good remaining protection. It is often the case that it can be a tactical skirmish,” said the violet coach who drove Austria defensively stabilized. After Salzburg (11), the “Veilchen” received the second fewest goals.
“You know the players”
The uncertainty factor, of course, remains the green and white coach. Ferdinand Feldhofer makes his debut as a rapid coach in the Vienna Derby of all places. There are always open questions: How much can he change in a short time? We’ll study quickly. You know the players. And we have one or the other idea how they might come, ”added the 50-year-old.
And then specified: “I do not assume that Rapid will play football from Salzburg or Sturm Graz. Therefore we have already considered which direction we are going”, but added: “We look at ourselves. The players become more self-conscious, are physically in good condition, know the processes very well. “
Trembling for Suttner
Only captain Markus Suttner worried coach Schmid. The left-back, most recently an integral part of the three-way defense chain, could not be labeled. “He’s got a big bruise in the hip area. We’ll have to wait and see how severe his pain is, we’ll also wait for the final diagnosis. We won’t take any risks,” said the violet coach.
Who did not want to set a point target for the last two rounds against Rapid and LASK. “The boys have played a really strong season so far. I can’t remember a game in which we weren’t able to win,” concluded Schmid. And so it should continue on Sunday.