Bundesliga in the TICKER

LIVE from 5pm: SK Rapid meets Hartberg!

Will Rapid and Hartberg put up another tough fight this time?

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

10th round in Austria's Bundesliga: SK Rapid welcomes TSV Hartberg. We report live (see below). 

Here is the LIVETICKER:

Twice they started, twice they lost: Rapid don't have good memories of TSV Hartberg's recent visits to the Allianz Stadion. That is not the only indication that the Styrians are rightly classified as a fearful opponent. They have won five times in the league against the Viennese side, and the club has not managed to do so more often in any other away stadium in the top flight. Added to this is the coaching effect: under Manfred Schmid, all three games ended in victory.

"The last games were a long time ago, that has little significance!"
Three points each were secured against WSG Tirol (1:0), Altach (2:0) and Wolfsberg (3:2), and there have been six consecutive wins without defeat - if another game is added, that would be a new TSV record in the Bundesliga. However, achieving this will be a difficult task, especially as the Viennese are unbeaten in eight games across all competitions and are second in the table, one point behind leaders Sturm Graz after nine rounds. Hartberg have played one game less and are six points behind the Viennese in sixth place.

"They haven't changed that much under the new coach. What Hartberg did in the past two years was already good. Now there has been a slight adaptation in the game against the ball, with the ball it's similar processes and they certainly have a lot of self-confidence," said Rapid coach Robert Klauß. The two home defeats in 2023/24 against the Styrians would not provide any extra motivation. "The last few games were a long time ago, it doesn't mean much," emphasized the German.

"You can do well three games in a row!"
For his team, which has picked up 13 out of a possible 15 points at home in the league, it is the start of a run of seven games in three weeks. "You can do well in three games in a row, but it gets difficult from the fourth, so you have to see when to rotate. It may well be necessary to give players a break in the Conference League," explained Klauß. Isak Jansson is not an issue for the time being. "There will be a check next week to see how things are progressing. If the trend remains positive, then he can return to team training," said Rapids' coach.

The Styrians will have to do without Justin Omoregie for some time due to a thigh injury sustained in the ÖFB Under-21s. Nevertheless, they are aiming to continue their run of success. "When you win three times in a row, you want to do it a fourth time as well. We've already built up enough self-confidence and the realistic realization that we can also play a really good game away against Rapid," said Schmid.