Preview of the away match at LASK

Austria Wien face LASK away from home in round 15 of the ADMIRAL Bundesliga on Sunday at 5 pm. The Violets once again want to ‘get the maximum out of the game and not give an inch’, explains coach Stephan Helm, who will be without the suspended Dominik Fitz in Linz.

Manfred Fischer & Co have celebrated seven wins in a row in recent weeks, with Austria Wien always coming out on top in October and November. In the Bundesliga, there have been six full wins in a row, a feat last achieved by the Violets in the 2012/13 season. A streak that is inspiring - but taking off is not an option.

Modesty & focus

‘Of course, something like this generates a lot of positive energy and is fun. But it's important that we remain humble, keep our focus on ourselves and don't give an inch. That's exactly how we organised the training week and the players are fully on board’, says a satisfied Stephan Helm.

However, the objective for the final duels in 2024 is also clear: ‘Our aim is to get the maximum out of the last two games and go one better.’ The first opponent on Sunday is LASK, who were beaten 1-2 away at Borac Banja Luka in the UEFA Conference League on Thursday.

Irrespective of this, Austria know what to expect in Linz: ‘LASK have recovered from a difficult first phase this season and have since become one of the top teams in all areas. But that's no surprise for us. We will again try to take away the opponent's strengths and at the same time get our own on the pitch. I think we did that very well against Hartberg last time and we want to do the same against LASK.’

Fitz suspension: ‘Other players are already eager’

The Violet coaching team can almost draw from the full. Ziad El Sheiwi is still out through injury, while Dominik Fitz is suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card against Hartberg. ‘He is of course a very special player who always has excellent ideas in the final third. It's no coincidence that he's the best assist provider in the league, and he's also a goal scorer himself’, says Helm.

‘But’, continues the head coach immediately, ’it's also the case that we currently have more or less all of our players fit. As a result, other players are getting minutes who have earned it and are eager for it. I'm sure we'll find good solutions here.’