Lucas Gourna-Douath

Salzburg’s record purchase is now just a bench warmer

Lucas Gourna-Douath (left) only rarely gets minutes of action.(Bild: Andreas Tröster)

Since the change of coach from Gerhard Struber to Onur Cinel, midfielder Lucas Gourna-Douath has lost his regular place.The Frenchman has only played a total of 53 minutes in the last three games. FC Red Bull Salzburg once paid a record transfer fee for him. 

Three rounds are still to be played in the Bundesliga. And for the first time in years, the title fight is not only exciting again, but serial champions Salzburg no longer have it in their own hands. After the 2-2 draw in the top match against league leaders Sturm, the Bulls must continue to hope for a slip-up by Graz and, of course, score points themselves.

Interim coach Onur Cinel is particularly encouraged by the second half against the Styrians for the final spurt for the championship trophy: "There was a lot of self-confidence in our own abilities. You could tell that the boys played with a completely different attitude. That showed them how good they can be. We have to take that kind of emotion into the next three games." One player who has not been able to take much from the last few games is Lucas Gourna-Douath. The young Frenchman can safely be described as one of the losers of the change of coach.

13 million euros transfer fee
Under Matthias Jaissle, Mozartstadt's record transfer - who arrived from AS Saint-Étienne in the summer of 2022 for a fee of €13 million - quickly played his way into the starting line-up after recovering from injury. This continued during Gerhard Struber's tenure. But since the German-Turk took over, the 20-year-old has been missing from Salzburg's first eleven. 

Frenchman Gourna-Douath (pictured with Luka Sucic) has little to celebrate at the moment.(Bild: Andreas Tröster)

Mamady Diambou has had the edge under Cinel so far.(Bild: GEPA)

On the Liefering loanee's debut on the sidelines against Austria Klagenfurt, Gourna-Douath played 22 minutes on the pitch. In the "return match" three days later in Carinthia, he played 31 minutes. He was even allowed to watch the entirety of the key match against the "Blackies" from the bench, making a meagre 53 minutes of playing time, in which the U21 national team player did not exactly impose himself.

In the "Cinel era", the most expensive purchase in the club's history mutated into a bench warmer. There seems to be no getting around Mamady Diambou at the moment. The Malian was recently deployed in the number six position, but didn't exactly look solid.