Rapid Misery Continues - 0:1 Defeat Against WAC

The WAC can continue to dream of winning the double. The Wolfsberg team secured a narrow 1-0 victory at Rapid in the 7th round of the championship group of the football Bundesliga, just three days after their first triumph in the ÖFB Cup, and remain only three points behind league leaders and title defenders Sturm Graz. At least until Sunday, the WAC caught up with second-placed Wiener Austria, while the Hütteldorfers, who have been winless in five competitive matches, remain in fifth place.

WAC continued their high-flying form with a 1-0 win over struggling Rapid

The only goal in front of 17,990 spectators at the Allianz Stadium was scored by David Atanga (63rd minute), who had just been substituted in. Thus, a "joker" from coach Dietmar Kühbauer made the difference, as was the case in the 1-0 win against Hartberg in Klagenfurt on Thursday. The Carinthians continued their high-flying form with their third consecutive competitive victory, having not suffered a defeat in nine matches. Next Sunday, they will play a home game against sixth-placed Blau-Weiß Linz, while Rapid will visit Austria in the derby.

There were four changes in the Wolfsberg team compared to Thursday. Up front, Angelo Gattermayer, who was recently in the spotlight as a match-winner, teamed up with Erik Kojzek. In more defensive roles, Cheick Diabate and Ervin Omic were included in the starting lineup. At Rapid, Dominik Vincze replaced the injured Armin Gröller in central defense. Moritz Oswald moved from the right-back position to midfield to compensate for the suspended Mamadou Sangare. Regular left-back Jonas Auer was back in the team. On the right wing, Andrija Radulovic was preferred over Louis Schaub.

Rapid Vienna slightly more active in the first half

Before the break, there was little sign of a boost from the guests due to the greatest success in the club's history. Numerous passing errors characterized a very disjointed first half with many interruptions, in which the Viennese were somewhat more active, but themselves could only rarely create great goal danger. Matthias Seidl finished twice (24th, 40th), and a header from Dion Beljo went wide (34th). Radulovic was already injured and replaced by Schaub.

On the Carinthians' side, Dominik Baumgartner (21st), Maximilian Ullmann (31st), Gattermayer (38th), and Kojzek (45th+3) failed against Rapid goalkeeper Niklas Hedl. In his 100th league game, he was even more challenged right after the restart with a volley from Baumgartner (52nd). For Rapid, Beljo couldn't get another header on target from a good position (60th).

Atanga Kept Title Chance Alive

A short time later, the guests underlined why they were rightly called the "best transition team in Austria" by Stefan Kulovits. Through "joker" Thierno Ballo and Diabate, the ball landed in the middle, where Atanga scored precisely into the corner with his left foot. A double strike was in the air, but Atanga missed a Ballo cross after a counterattack by centimeters (65th).

Subsequently, the hosts pushed for the equalizer without rewarding themselves for the effort. Bolla rattled the crossbar, but a goal would not have counted due to an offside position (77th). A Jansson shot was not far off (85th). As a result, Kulovits suffered his first defeat in his second game as interim coach. Previously, there had been a 0-0 draw against BWL. Against WAC, who celebrated in front of the few traveling fans after the final whistle, there was no victory in all four season duels.

(APA/Red)

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