Hartberg against Unserie

“We’re already hearing that in the dressing room”

Hartberg's Dominik Prokop

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Hartberg's soccer team is currently one of the six best in the country - but the Schopp squad still has to wait for its first exclamation mark in the championship group. They travel to Klagenfurt on Sunday - where they will have to be better in front of goal in the final third than they have been recently.

Hartberg amazed the experts in the first half of the Bundesliga - fourth after the first half of the season, with 33 goals scored, TSV had the fourth-best offense in the league. During the winter break, however, the "scopes" of the TSV snipers seem to have frozen...

Only five goals in seven competitive matches
Top scorer Max Entrup and Co. scored just five goals in seven competitive matches in 2024. A tally that is more commonly associated with teams in the qualifying group. "We're struggling in the final third at the moment," says Dominik Prokop, "which is of course also due to the fact that opponents are adapting to us differently after our strong fall. We have to get back to work with more composure and confidence, then I'm in good spirits," said the dribblanski.

Prokop (right) and Hartberg are chasing their first Bundesliga win against Klagenfurt on Sunday.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

With Prokop, Avdijaj (whose suspension was reduced to one game after he grabbed the crotch against Rapid), Sangare, Providence, Frieser and spearhead Entrup in front of him, there is a lot of quality - the current goal tally for the Blues is more than meagre. Tellingly, neo-team striker Entrup (12 goals in competitive matches) has the plague on his shoe, scoring just once in 2024. Avdijaj is the second-best scorer with six goals, but is suspended in Klagenfurt. He is followed by Frieser, Providence and Prokop with just two goals in total. "That's not enough from me," Prokop is honest. "But we have to solve this situation as a whole team."

There should be Hartberg cheers in Carinthia.

(Bild: Sepp Pail)

If things go better in Klagenfurt, there is a good chance that TSV's troublesome streak against the Carinthians (last win in 2016, none in the Bundesliga) will come to an end. "We've already heard something about this streak in the dressing room," said the 26-year-old Vienna native. "We've always struggled against Klagenfurt, they've deserved to be in the championship group for three years now. But there's no better time to end this streak. We want to show that we're not satisfied with reaching the top six, we want more!"