Hartberg after 1:0 against Wiener Austria for the first time in the ÖFB Cup Final
In front of 14,237 spectators, Wiener Austria experienced a disappointing end to their attempt to win the 28th Cup title. The record holder in the ÖFB Cup had appeared almost unbeatable in recent months. However, Stephan Helm's team squandered their chances in the first half and was unable to improve after falling behind.
Sallinger Prevents Wiener Austria's Lead
The roles were clearly defined before the duel. Austria, leading in the championship group, reshuffled their defense during the English week. Lucas Galvao and Philipp Wiesinger started alongside Aleksandar Dragovic. As usual in the Cup, Mirko Kos started in goal. Schmid relied on Fabian Wilfinger in defense, and in the offense, Jed Drew got his chance from the start. Hartberg began ambitiously, but Austria was in the game after a few minutes and approached a goal. Raphael Sallinger had to make his first save on a shot from Abubakr Barry (13th minute), then the TSV keeper was able to decisively deflect the onrushing Nik Prelec (18th minute). Sallinger, who had been unbeaten in the Cup for over 300 minutes, remained in focus. Dominik Fitz intercepted a completely failed back pass from Drew, but Hartberg's goalkeeper successfully made himself big again (32nd minute). However, the Styrians kept a clean sheet and had a dangerous situation in the purple penalty area before the break after a volley from Manuel Pfeifer.
Wiener Austria Without a Dangerous Shot on Goal in Second Half
Austria started the second 45 minutes with a lot of possession but remained harmless offensively. Fitz also could not provide any inspiring ideas. Hartberg managed to escape the pressing of the Viennese and scored from such an opportunity to take the lead. Avdijaj increased the pace and beat Kos after a one-two with Patrik Mijic. A reaction from the Violets was needed. Helm responded to the drought in attack, taking captain Manfred Fischer off the field and bringing on Marko Raguz as a fresh striker. Austria's pressure increased, but Hartberg continued to clear the many high balls consistently. Austria ultimately did not manage a single dangerous shot on goal in the second half.
Suspension for Dragovic After Wiener Austria's Exit from ÖFB Cup
After the final whistle, Aleksandar Dragovic's emotions got the better of him. The defensive chief verbally lashed out at referee Sebastian Gishamer, received a red card, and was suspended by the disciplinary committee for two matches, missing Sunday's game against WAC and the following week's match against Rapid. Dominik Fitz will also miss the Cup finalists from Wolfsberg due to a yellow card suspension.
(APA/Red)
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