Relegation almost fixed

Austria Lustenau still believes in a miracle

Andreas Heraf(Bild: APA/EXPA/JOHANN GRODER)

Hope is alive, but the likelihood of avoiding relegation is extremely low: with three rounds to go in the Bundesliga qualifying group, Austria Lustenau have "one and a half legs over the abyss", as Lustenau coach Andreas Heraf aptly put it after the 0-0 draw at WSG Tirol. But giving up is not an option. "There are still three rounds to go, maybe a miracle will happen," said the 56-year-old.

Lustenau need three wins, and penultimate-placed Altach cannot be allowed to pick up any more points. A direct duel in Altach is still to come in the final round. Before that, the bottom team will face Vienna Austria and BW Linz, both at home. Altach host WAC and are the guests of WSG. "I still have enough hope, because if I look at the last three games, we know that we can win against anyone. So it's also possible to win three games in a row," said Heraf.

Lustenau "still alive"
However, that would be one more win than they have achieved so far this season. Only the 2-0 win at WSG on February 11 and the 2-0 win against BW Linz on March 10 have resulted in three points. "When you've only won two out of 29 games, it doesn't sound too likely that you'll win three in a row. But we're still alive and who knows what life will bring," Heraf revealed. However, this will require an improvement in finishing above all. In the past seven rounds without a win, they have never scored more than one goal.

In Innsbruck, this would have been absolutely deserved, even if the Tyroleans were also not as cool-headed on one or two occasions. "In a nutshell, the ball didn't want to go in the goal. We're not being rewarded for our risk-taking and we're also not being pursued by luck at the moment," summed up the Viennese. That was also the case recently in the 1:1 and 1:2 against WAC. "It's the quality of our finishing that's preventing us from scoring more points," said Pius Grabher self-critically. And goalkeeper Domenik Schierl added: "Unfortunately, the soccer gods aren't looking down on us."