WSG in the qualifying round

The fight for survival will be a real slaughter

There will be a reunion in the qualifying round: Johannes Handl (left) and Dominik Stumberger.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

WSG Tirol ended the basic round of the Bundesliga on Sunday with a 2-0 defeat at Vienna's Austria. Now the seriousness of life as a footballer really begins in the qualifying round: Wattens are second last, just two points ahead of bottom team Austria Lustenau, and now face ten final games.

The coach knows and sees it. As always. Almost after every training session, coach Thomas Silberberger tells us, Nik Prelec prepares the ball on the penalty spot and takes two or three penalties. With the emphasis on "sink": "Most confidently - right into the corner. Strangely enough, mostly into the other corner," reveals the WSG coach.

On Sunday in the Generali-Arena, Prelec surprised his teammates and himself: The penalty was neither sharp nor well-placed, easy pickings for Austrias goalkeeper Früchtl.

Only two points ahead
The Watten team did not take a 1-0 lead, but lost 2-0, while bottom-placed Austria Lustenau won 2-0 against BW Linz - and are now just two points behind the Tyroleans after sharing the points.

Shocked? "No, it means that Blau Weiß Linz are also back in the relegation battle. Now there are four of us," sighs Silberberger. Yes - the battle for relegation will be a real slaughter (again). With a completely open outcome. "We just have to play a rock-solid qualifying round. Defensively, we've been pretty good recently anyway, including on Sunday in Vienna. But offensively we have to improve. We only have Prelec at the moment, we need more," said the coach.

Against Wolfsberg on Saturday
The Tyroleans start the ten rounds for survival ("It's ten final games") on Saturday with a home game against Wolfsberger AC. "I believe that the teams that pick up points against Austria and WAC will manage to stay in the league," Silberberger is convinced. It starts with a bonus round.