Hit against Salzburg

Rapid: The final is taboo before the big test

Rapid coach Robert Klauß is only thinking about the league match in Salzburg, thoughts of the cup final are taboo. The Bulls' Cup exit, on the other hand, hardly brought any insights, but can be a mental factor.

I don't understand why everyone is only looking towards Klagenfurt. I'm not interested in that. Otherwise we'll lose in Salzburg and everyone will be in a bad mood again." Rapids coach Robert Klauß puts a stop to questions about the Cup final against Sturm. Too far away in sporting terms (May 1), therefore taboo. But the organization is underway. Different quarters than for the final 0:2 last season, this time Graz will be the "home team"

"Nothing surprising"
A dream of the future for Klauß. He didn't pay attention to Sturm during Salzburg's cup knock-out, but only to tomorrow's league opponent. Surprisingly, there was "nothing surprising" for him in the 3:4. Although the champions conceded four goals at home against a league rival for the first time since May 2009 (1:4 against Altach). "But there was no pattern to the mistakes, it was a wild game," said Klauß, only interested in the style of play. Freshness, however, could be a factor for him tomorrow, the head even a chance.

Rapids coach "doesn't care about the atmosphere in Salzburg - I judge what I see". Nevertheless, it is questionable how Salzburg will digest the Cup shock: "That depends on what we offer them. Do we give them the opportunity to pick themselves up or do we show them that they have problems?" says Klauß.

In his era (twelve games), Rapid only lost once - in December against Salzburg (0:1). "We're not on a par with them in terms of the table and the quality of the squad, we know how good they are. But we've been able to keep up with them," says Klauß, who wants to take home something worthwhile tomorrow. "Now comes the biggest possible test, it will show how good we are at defending."

Sturm will not be an issue until mid-April. Then Graz have three games in 13 days. The Cup final then takes priority