125 JAHRE SK RAPID
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19.08.2021
Spielbericht, Profis, UEFA Europa League Qualifikation

3-0: Rapid on the front foot after a home win against Zorya

As opposed to our recent European fixtures, the news in the build-up was all positive on the personnel front. Filip Stojkovic and Dejan Petrovic were given the green light and therefore returned just in time for our UEFA Europa League play-off against Zorya Luhansk. Max Ullmann’s health issues also cleared up in time for him to join Stojkovic in Head Coach Didi Kühbauer’s starting XI. Robert Ljubicic has his Bundesliga match ban out of the way, and he too was ready to start in a central position for Thursday’s game in Hütteldorf along with Richard Strebinger in goal; our captain Maxi Hofmann and Leo Greiml as the centre backs, Srdjan Grahovac in midfield, Marco Grüll and Kelvin Arase on the wings, supporting Ercan Kara and Taxi Fountas up front.

The early stages of the game belonged to the visitors from Luhansk: Strebinger had to prove his worth between the sticks with a save from Kochergin’s long range strike (7’), and when he was rounded minutes later it looked as though we would trail, before Greiml rescued the situation with a last-ditch clearance (11’). It was the first of several big moments for our young number 30, who would be called upon often at the heart of the defence. After surviving the initial onslaught, Rapid responded in perfect fashion as Grahovac hooked a clearance over everyone, playing in Fountas in the process. Our in-form striker raced onto the ball, nipped in behind the Zorya defence and did very well to fire the bouncing ball into the bottom corner for 1-0 (29’)!

The Green and Whites were rejuvenated by the sudden lead, and new signing Grüll in particular stood out, tormenting the defence and finding room to shoot against the goalkeeper, and again with a side-footed attempt which was stopped (35’). At this point we began to firmly seize control of the game, defending compactly and yet also creating attacks for our forwards as we transitioned down the field. It was surely a good recipe for success, but with no further goals in the first half, we’d need to keep it up in the second!

Ercan Kara helped us take the next step towards the win!

We certainly came out hunting for that next goal after the break, and Arase went closest early on as he won the ball back himself but shot just over the bar (51’). The visitors’ attack was still alive and kicking in the game though, and they had a great chance to level things after 64 minutes, yet although they began to match us in terms of chances, Strebinger, Greiml or Ullmann always seemed to get something in the way to prevent the danger.

 The legend of the Rapid quarter-hour, on the other hand, was undeniable, and it came to the fore once again on this occasion. Ullmann quickly bypassed the midfield with a pass, Kara picked up speed, turned a defender inside and out with his run, and stormed unstoppably towards goal before perfectly picking out the far corner for 2-0! The Allianz Stadium was heating up (78’)! The first leg of the tie was all but decided, yet Rapid were still working on setting up the best possible starting position for the return fixture next week. Substitute Schick shone in his favoured role as an assist provider, finding Grüll with an inviting pass behind the defensive line, before seeing the ball emphatically buried into the corner from close range to make it 3-0 (85’)! The move was perhaps the crowning glory on a perfect evening - and that’s how it ended in Hütteldorf!

With this win, Maxi Hofmann & Co. put themselves in a more than solid starting position for the return match in seven days’ time. Having a 3-0 lead in the bag breeds self-confidence, but the second leg in Famagusta showed us that a game has to be played first, and with that in mind we can look forward to another 90 minutes of battling in Ukraine on Thursday. RAPID!

Fotos: GEPA

 

 

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SK Rapid - Zorya Luhansk 3:0 (1:0)
Wien, Allianz Stadion, 10.300 Zuschauer, SR Schärer (SUI)

Torfolge:

1:0 Fountas (29.)

2:0 Kara (78.)

3:0 Grüll (85.)

Rapid: Strebinger – Stojkovic (71./Schick), Greiml, Hofmann, Ullmann – Ljubicic (79./Petrovic), Grahovac (79./Schuster) – Arase (79./Kitagawa), Fountas (60./Knasmüllner), Grüll – Kara

Luhansk: Schewtschenko – Faworow, Wernydub, Imerekow (84./Cvek), Juninho – Nasaryna – Kotschergin, Buleza (85./Cristian), Hromow (64./Zaheditabar), Kabajew (76./Chomtschenowskyj) – Sajjadmanesch (84./Owusu)

Gelbe Karten: Greiml, Hofmann bzw. Kabajew, Wernydub, Faworow

label.survey

Wer war Man of the Match beim 3:0-Heimsieg gegen Luhansk?
label.total-votes: 883
Richard Strebinger
4%
Filip Stojkovic
1%
Leo Greiml
83%
Maximilian Hofmann
1%
Maximilian Ullmann
1%
Srdjan Grahovac
0%
Robert Ljubicic
0%
Kelvin Arase
1%
Taxiarchis Fountas
4%
Marco Grüll
5%
Ercan Kara
0%
Lion Schuster
0%
Dejan Petrovic
0%
Thorsten Schick
0%
Christoph Knasmüllner
0%
Koya Kitagawa
0%