Storm's Gazibegovic

“Nothing is decided in any competition!”

Jusuf Gazibegovic wants to repeat last year's Cup feat with Sturm against his home club Salzburg.(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Last season, the key to Sturm's Cup victory was in Salzburg - but the Blacks' 6:5 win in the quarter-final penalty shoot-out thriller also opened up a small "drought", as there has been no win against the Bulls since then. Jusuf Gazibegovic, scorer of the last Sturm victory, and Co. want to change that on Thursday (20:45).

The Cup thriller on February 3, 2023 hurt the champion Bulls tremendously - in the following five duels, the "Empire" did not allow a Sturm victory, the 1:0 on Sunday was the third Bulls victory.

Jusuf Gazibegovic, a "child of the Bulls school", is determined to avert the triple slap in the face (European Championship exit with Bosnia, 0:1 defeat in the league duel against Salzburg, now Cup).

I'm happy at Sturm, but I feel ready to take the next step. If something comes in, I'll take a close look at it.

Jusuf Gazibegovic

"Salzburg have a lot of quality," said Bosnia's 15-time team player, "and they're proving it, even if some are talking about a not-so-good season. But that's enough!" Above all, the Bulls do one thing better than Sturm: "They are more efficient, score goals when it matters. We lack that."

Nevertheless, Sturm is ready for another chance: "The last match gives us confidence, we played a good game. If we play like that, we'll certainly get our chances."

The suspensions of Stankovic and Lavalee hurt: "They are two super players who are not easy to compensate for, but we have a good squad."

The 24-year-old does not believe that the cup would be Sturm's last chance to win the title: "There are still eight games left in the league, Salzburg have to win them first. Nothing is decided yet in any competition!"

A fortnight ago, Jusuf Gazibegovic was at the bottom of the European Championship qualifiers with Bosnia.(Bild: Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

The fan favorite shares the shattered European Championship dream with Bosnia with Salzburg's Amar Dedic: "The fact that it was over in three minutes against Ukraine in the biggest game of my career was very bitter. But we're looking ahead and have to step on the gas in the next qualifiers."

How his career will continue in the summer (his contract runs until 2026) is still open: "It's hard to say. I'm happy at Sturm, but I feel ready to take the next step. If something comes in, I'll take a close look at it."