Before Hartberg: More flexibility in the squad

Maybe not necessarily the next match point, but at least an important set point Austria Wien has on Saturday at home against TSV Hartberg (17:00). After the successful start to the spring in Altach, Manfred Schmid wants to go one better against the Styrians.

The race for places in the champions' group still has three rounds to go. Only six points separate 10th place from 4th place. So, whoever starts at full strength will automatically push himself into a strong starting position. "The top 6 is our goal, Hartberg is another key game for the championship group qualification," says Manfred Schmid confidently. The head coach celebrates his 51st birthday on Sunday, a win would probably be one of the best presents.

"We have good memories with the 4:3 away win in autumn, nevertheless I expect a very strong opponent and a difficult game." The positive after this week of training is that Marco Djuricin and Can Keles are fit again and could be an issue for the squad on Saturday. "That makes us a bit more flexible, but let's see if we can include both of them already."

New signing Lucas Galvao could definitely play an important role. He is supposed to stabilise the defensive centre, Schmid raves about the Brazilian, who is already eligible to play: "He has top physical stats, brings a lot of quality to training. He will certainly make us better and give us joy."

Schmid certainly doesn't need to get his players hot under the collar, everyone knows the importance of the task in front of their own fans. "I have heard from so many that they are already looking forward to the game and will certainly come to the stadium. We can score against a direct opponent and have a great chance to be up front."