In the derby of all places

More than two years after transfer: Raguz about to make his debut

Marko Raguz

(Bild: GEPA)

27 months after moving to Austria, Marko Raguz is about to make his professional debut for the Viennese club. After a long period of suffering, countless examinations and more or less helpful diagnoses, the attacker seems fit for at least brief appearances.

With the big Viennese soccer derby at Rapid on Sunday (5pm/live in the sportkrone.at ticker), the stage for the 26-year-old's comeback could hardly be bigger. More than the role of "joker" will not be possible for the time being.

"I think he's already in good enough shape to get some playing time. The qualities he has, especially in the penalty area, to pass balls on and make them stick, are the same as they've always been," said head coach Stephan Helm about the former long-term patient. Raguz has taken his first steps on the road back with the Young Violets this season. His three appearances in the Regionalliga Ost lasted 11, 23 and 45 minutes. It's a long story before it got that far.

Stephan Helm

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

"A real bargain"
In the summer of 2022, Jürgen Werner believed he had made "a real bargain". No less than €1.3 million is said to have been paid to LASK for the striker by the current sports director, who was still pulling the strings in the sporting field at the time. Raguz arrived with injury status, having torn a cruciate ligament in November 2020 and had not got back on track fitness-wise. Werner was certain that the attacker, who was once on the verge of making the ÖFB team, would be fit again in a few months. Things turned out differently. Raguz's time of suffering dragged on.

Jürgen Werner

(Bild: GEPA/GEPA pictures)

March 6, 2022 was to remain his last appearance in the Bundesliga for some time. Problems with his hip forced him to take another break. It was reported that Raguz no longer felt he was in the right place in Linz. Werner struck and assumed that his Upper Austrian compatriot would be fully fit again by spring 2023 at the latest. A false conclusion, as the manager later admitted.

They had initially "trained into the injury", Werner admitted a year after signing. Sports director Manuel Ortlechner had emphasized almost mantra-like in response to repeated questions before and after that that he wanted to give Raguz "all the time in the world". Meanwhile, the professional himself was not often seen in Vienna-Favoriten. Germany, Belgium and England were not the only places where he sought advice from doctors. It is said to have been more than a dozen doctors. His stays abroad lasted for months.

Manuel Ortlechner

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Question of meaning at the start of the year
The question of whether the effort still made sense eventually became louder. At the beginning of the year, it was "very, very hard", said Raguz on Sky in August. "I was already thinking about whether the whole thing still made sense." He was afraid of every move on the pitch. But he finally wanted to stay in Vienna, said Raguz looking back. From January onwards, he was always with the professionals, "simply so that I could maintain contact". He trained goalkeeping, passing drills and slalom runs - step by step was the motto.

Raguz finally arrived during the recent international break. He played one half in the test match against SKN St. Pölten. He was not allowed a goal, but Raguz felt he had taken the next, final step. "Putting on the shirt of the first team was a very nice feeling," he said afterwards. Physically, he is now very stable, the attacker reported. What's still missing now is team training and games. "The process is slowly coming to an end. We are all very happy."