First goal, then red

ÖFB Cup: Stripfing vs Hartberg – LIVE from 6pm

Manfred Schmid

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Hartberg made it to the semi-finals of the ÖFB Cup with great difficulty. The Bundesliga side won 2:0 against second division Stripfing in the Generali-Arena in Vienna on Friday evening, but only after extra time. Bitter: Marco Djuricin scored in stoppage time, but saw red after the VAR decision.

Substitutes Patrik Mijic (102') and Elias Havel (105') scored for the Styrians. Hartberg are in the semi-finals for the fourth time after 1995, 2012 and 2022, but have never reached the final. 

"I can now stand up and say that all that matters is that we've made it through, we're delighted. But for an ambitious coach, it wasn't enough today, it was a poor performance," said Hartberg coach Manfred Schmid on ORF. Reaching the quarter-finals had already been a great success for Stripfing. On the way there, the second-to-last team in the second division also eliminated record champions Rapid.

The Lower Austrians came very close to another surprise against Hartberg, but Marco Djuricin's supposed winning goal shortly before the end of normal time was disallowed by VAR. "I was offside, but the ball came from the opponent. I don't understand it, but that's the way it is now. It would have been the lucky punch," explained Djuricin.

No discernible difference in class
Favorites Hartberg got off to a mixed start in their first competitive match of the year. The Styrians made a lot of mistakes in their play and rarely managed to establish a flow. When they did manage to launch a decent attack, they lacked efficiency in front of goal. Furkan Demir missed the best opportunity in stoppage time (45.+2). Stripfing kept the game balanced for long stretches and had a great chance to make it 1:0 immediately after the restart. Darijo Pecirep failed to beat the visitors' goalkeeper Raphael Sallinger one-on-one (48').

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Hartberg improved as the second half progressed, but there was still little goal threat from the numerous phases of pressure. It then became turbulent in stoppage time: substitute Djuricin scored the supposed winner for Stripfing, which was disallowed for offside after a VAR review. Although the pass to Djuricin came from the opponent, referee Josef Spurny did not consider it a proper return.

Hartberg took advantage of superior numbers in extra time
Shortly afterwards, things got even worse for Djuricin. Because he had taken off his shirt while celebrating the goal and committed a foul shortly afterwards, he was sent off with a yellow-red card (90.+7). In extra time, the resistance of the second-division side, who were outnumbered, was then broken. First, Mijic poked the ball into the net from close range. Just three minutes later, Havel put the game beyond Hartberg's reach. Both goals were set up by Donis Avdijaj, who also came on as a substitute.

ÖFB Cup quarter-final:

SV Stripfing/Weiden - TSV Hartberg 0:2 n.V. (0:0)
Vienna, Generali-Arena
Goals: Mijic (102.), Havel (105.)

WAC - Schwarz-Weiß Bregenz (Friday, 8.30 pm)
SK Sturm Graz - FK Austria Wien (Saturday, 6.15pm)
LASK - Red Bull Salzburg (Sunday, 18.15)