Conference League: Rapid Vienna must admit defeat after extra-time thriller against Djurgården

SK Rapid dramatically missed out on reaching the semi-finals of the Football Conference League. The team led by coach Robert Klauß lost the second leg against Djurgårdens IF in the sold-out Weststadion 1-4 (1-2;1-1) after extra time, having played almost the entire match with one player less. The Swedes advanced to the final four with an aggregate score of 4-2. There, they will face Chelsea, with matches scheduled for May 1 and 8.

Red Card for Mamadou Sangare After Brutal Foul

Mamadou Sangare saw red as early as the seventh minute after a consequential and unnecessary foul on Nino Zugelj. With a numerical advantage, the team from Stockholm took the lead through Marcus Danielson, who converted a hand penalty (42'). An own goal by Jacob Une brought the hosts back into the game (45.+1), but Keita Kosugi's stunning shot forced extra time (77'). There, Tobias Gulliksen sealed Rapid's exit with a brace (93./105.). After another red card - this time it was Serge-Philippe Raux-Yao after a nasty foul (110.) - Green-White finished the match with only nine players.

It was Rapid's first home defeat in an international competition after nine unbeaten games (6 wins, 3 draws). As a result, they missed out on the club's fourth European Cup semi-final and the opportunity to face the stars of the London top club Chelsea. Additionally, Rapid missed out on substantial further earnings.

Early Dismissal Weakened Rapid Vienna

Compared to the first leg a week ago, Klauß changed his starting eleven in three positions: Sangare returned to the defensive midfield after serving a suspension. Jonas Auer replaced the suspended Bendeguz Bolla but continued to work the left side as usual, while Moritz Oswald occupied Bolla's right side. Captain Matthias Seidl played instead of Isak Jansson, with the Swede initially on the bench. At Djurgården, coach Jani Honkavaara had midfielder Daniel Stensson and striker Tokmac Nguen, who were suspended in Stockholm, available again.

In front of 25,600 spectators - the guest sector was also sold out - the match began as poorly as possible for Rapid. Sangare tackled Zugelj on the sideline and initially received a yellow card from referee Anthony Taylor. After VAR intervention and viewing the video footage, the Englishman changed his decision and sent off the 22-year-old (7'). Thus, Taylor showed a red card to a Green-White player in his second match involving Rapid this season. In the Europa League play-off against Braga in Vienna (2-2) last August, it was coach Klauß who was sent off.

It was not only the end for Sangare, but also for Zugelj, who was substituted with a suspected broken leg and taken to the hospital. Santeri Haarala came on for him. Klauß also reacted by bringing on Romeo Amane to strengthen the defensive midfield and took striker Ercan Kara off the field (9').

This significantly changed the dynamics of the duel, with Rapid facing a defensive battle. The first top opportunity for the Swedes was missed by the new man. Haarala stood alone in front of Niklas Hedl after a fine combination by the guests, but the keeper prevented the deficit with a strong save (17th minute). On the other side, Seidl fell after contact with an opponent in the penalty area, but for referee Taylor, it was not enough for a penalty (18th minute).

Hand Penalty and an Own Goal

For Djurgården, things got even worse three minutes later. Offensive player Oskar Fallenius had to be substituted - also due to an injury - and was replaced by August Priske. Rapid then managed better to keep the opponent away from the goal. However, an unintentional handball by the poorly positioned Auer, who was hit from close range, brought the next setback for the hosts. After a long VAR review, Taylor pointed to the spot. Center-back Danielson confidently converted to give the guests the lead.

At the beginning of the eight-minute stoppage time, the wounded Rapids struck back with the friendly support of guest captain Une, who headed a Seidl free-kick into his own goal. Raux-Yao then cleared a shot from Tobias Gulliksen off the line in dire need (45+4), before a wild first half came to an end.

Decision in Extra Time

The second half began as the first ended, with a Green-White saving on the line. This time it was Dion Beljo with a header, stepping in for Hedl (48th minute). On the other side, Beljo failed twice against goalkeeper Jacob Rinne (53rd/58th minute). After Priske missed the goal in front of Hedl (58th minute), Seidl also missed the lead for the hosts after a quick counterattack. Here too, Rinne was on the spot (67th minute). Klauß then made substitutions, taking the tired Louis Schaub and Beljo, as well as the injured Nenad Cvetkovic, off the field, allowing the 20-year-old Amin-Elias Gröller to make his European debut.

At the beginning of the final quarter-hour, Djurgården appeared again in front of Hedl. The goalkeeper still fished a curler from Nguen out of the top corner (76th minute), but was powerless against the dream shot of the 19-year-old Japanese Kosugi after a mistake by Jansson. This opened everything up again. Jansson missed two more opportunities in the finish (89th/96th minute), which led to a half-hour extension. There, Gulliksen became the match-winner, with the 21-year-old Norwegian scoring a double.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.