Bundesliga in the ticker

Austria Vienna vs. Klagenfurt – LIVE from 5pm

Dragovic and Co. must be prepared for a tough battle against Klagenfurt.

(Bild: GEPA)

21st round of the Austrian Bundesliga: Austria Vienna host Austria Klagenfurt. We report live, see ticker below. The score is currently 1:0.

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Austria Vienna can look forward to leading the table on Sunday. In the home duel with stragglers Austria Klagenfurt, the hosts are clear favorites to increase the pressure on defending champions Sturm Graz with three points. The Styrians also face a derby against GAK on Sunday. Coach Stephan Helm was careful not to inflate expectations: "We want to get as much out of the basic round as possible."

Helm is expecting a bit of déjà vu on Saturday: "We faced similar challenges in the last game," he said, looking back on the 1-0 win at GAK - which was a tough affair in the first half. "It will be up to us to determine the rhythm of the game," said the Burgenland native. His captain Manfred Fischer called for concentration, especially in counter-pressing to prevent counter-attacks. "That's one of the few things that can be dangerous for us."

Despite Klagenfurt's less-than-inspiring results, Helm paid tribute to the Carinthians. "They are very well organized, have a coach in Peter Pacult who knows the league very well, has a lot of experience and always adjusts his team well to the opponent," said Helm, recalling Klagenfurt's recent and narrow 1-0 defeat to LASK or the 0-0 draw against Salzburg at the start of spring.

"Don't put too much pressure on ourselves"
 Despite the excellent prospects at the moment, a certain amount of grounding would be good for Austria given the low expectations at the start of the season. "We look from week to week. We're stepping on the gas, but we're not putting ourselves under any great pressure," said Fischer. After all, you don't have to. "We want to. You can see that in every training session and every game," emphasized the captain.

Carinthia's small hopes of reaching the top six were finally dashed in the 20th round with a 1-2 home defeat against LASK. For the first time since promotion and after three seasons in the championship group, they have to fight in the lower play-off. This was anything but a surprise for coach Pacult anyway. He had always talked about staying in the league. "Anyone who talks about anything else doesn't really know their way around or can't assess the situation," he said succinctly at the start of the season.

Harsh criticism of Hinteregger's attitude
"We have a lot of young players, we're in a learning process and everyone has to get involved. We will work hard to get the points we need," said Pacult, looking ahead. A look at the table shows just how tight things will be in the second phase of the season. Only three points would currently separate Klagenfurt from last place if the points were shared. "Everyone is aware that we have a difficult season," emphasized defensive veteran Martin Hinteregger.

The multiple ÖFB team player, who was reactivated in the winter, certainly wants to look upwards - keyword European Cup play-off. "The opportunity to achieve something is still there, and we should fight for it and give our all in every game," said the 32-year-old. He wants to shake up his colleagues and does not shy away from clear criticism. "Many in our team don't have the absolute will to win. You simply have to go through, even where it hurts. Unfortunately, not everyone in our team does that."