With video of the duel
Clear thing: Graz derby has its first winner
The Graz derby between Sturm and GAK on Saturday (kick-off at 5pm) is already electrifying the city, and in some cases the whole of Styria, days before the clash. Almost every Styrian soccer fan is eagerly awaiting the match. Niklas Geyrhofer (Sturm) and Christian Lichtenberger (GAK) have already had their first exchange of blows on the console.
More than 350 million copies sold make the soccer simulation "EA Sports FC" (formerly Fifa) one of the most popular console games in the world. It has been released annually for consoles and computers since 1993. Every year, soccer fans eagerly await its release so that they can lead their club to the title. Or to compete online against friends and enthusiasts from all over the world.
This year, GAK supporters were finally able to look forward to the start of sales. For the first time in 17 years, the "Red Jackets" are back in the game after their promotion. Reason enough for the "Krone" to invite Sturm's Niklas Geyrhofer and GAK playmaker Christian Lichtenberger to the derby on the console. The first exchange of blows took place in the "Steirerkrone" newsroom in the center of Graz as a little warm-up for the Graz derby on the Liebenau pitch on Saturday.
On paper, league leaders Sturm are the clear favorites against bottom-placed and promoted GAK. The two professionals fought two heated duels on the console. In which paper form prevailed: Geyrhofer won game one a clear 3-0, giving his own player the lead with a penalty lobbed into the middle. "First you get a penalty as a gift and then you shoot it so cheekily," laughed Lichtenberger in the direction of his opponent. He then went on to win the second duel - narrowly 3:2 after extra time. Despite the rivalry, one thing was paramount for both players: having fun! And that's why the one or other jab and tip in the direction of the differently "colored" opponent was not to be missed.
"Another win for the fans on Saturday wouldn't be bad," winked the 24-year-old Sturm defender Geyrhofer. "Every derby is extremely important. The week before is completely different to a normal one, you notice that in every training session. But also outside of it. The closer Saturday gets, the more you feel it." This is Geyrhofer's first derby, having missed the last two in the cup in the past two years through injury. "I'm really looking forward to this game. It will be a spectacle with the fans."
Logically, Lichtenberger is hoping for a completely different result. "Luckily we're playing in front of a sell-out crowd on Saturday and not on the Playstation," says the 28-year-old, who already knows the derby atmosphere from the previous season. "You look forward to it all week, the feeling is indescribable. A derby is always really cool. It will be a very special atmosphere for us, because we're playing Sturm away from home for the first time. It will be an incredible atmosphere. Even if I don't really notice the atmosphere on the pitch."
Both kickers agree on one thing: "A derby has its own rules, the cards are reshuffled." They both agree that Sturm are the favorites. "It will be a very competitive and close game," Geyrhofer nevertheless believes. And for Lichtenberger and the GAK, it's also about their first win since promotion. "We want to start a series. But Sturm will certainly not underestimate us."
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