"Krone" series

“Dad, please score a goal for me!”

Jubilation for Hermann Stadler, who had just scored in Karlsruhe.(Bild: Daniel Krug)

Part 7 of the "Krone" series: mind games before the second leg in Karlsruhe and a "bastard" named Oliver Kahn. At the end of the duel with KSC, the European Cup heroes of Salzburg Austria sang: "Germany, Germany, it's all over!"

A few weeks earlier, Rudi Quehenberger had been ridiculed when he made the decision to play Salzburg's UEFA Cup matches in Vienna. It was now clear that even the Ernst Happel Stadium was far too small. The hype surrounding Austria knew no bounds. The semi-final home game against Karlsruhe was sold out before the first ticket had even been printed.

Otto Baric's men were once again the underdogs, especially as KSC had previously swept Valencia out of the competition 7:0 (!). To make matters worse, "Otto Maximale" was once again plagued by personnel worries. The home game was anything but a treat, with dangerous scoring chances in short supply. And prompted a certain Oliver Kahn to make the following statement: "What kind of team is this? They can't do anything!"

Heimo Pfeifenberger, Nikola Jurcevic, Martin Amerhauser and Adi Hütter (from left) in the jerseys and T-shirts of the clubs that Austria Salzburg had eliminated on their way to the semi-finals.(Bild: Joachim Maislinger)

"He wanted to take the piss out of us. That spurred us on, we gave it our all," recalls Leo Lainer. "He talked about the worst team he'd ever played against," recalls club patron Quehenberger. "I forgave the bastard for the way things turned out," the now 83-year-old laughs heartily. Winnie Schäfer also leaned far out of the window before the second leg at the Wildparkstadion. "Everything will be done in 20 minutes," said the KSC head coach.

But the Austrians weren't just swimming along on noodle soup when it came to mind games either. Manager Toni Pichler (Quehenberger: "I have to thank him and Rudi Mirtl for everything, we were a close-knit community") had tickets printed for the final before the second leg, Pongau fans had caps printed with their desired result: 1:1! They could hardly believe their luck in Karlsruhe. Adi Hütter set up Nikola Jurcevic, who played an ideal pass to Hermann Stadler - and he made it 1:0 in minute 13!

Unity also celebrating
"I spoke to my daughter Nadine on the phone before the game. She was not quite four years old and asked me: 'Dad, please score a goal for me'. The fact that I scored was like something out of a fairy tale," said Stadler emotionally. For the 62-year-old Oberndorfer, who now coaches Austria's U16 national team, it was "one hundred percent" the most important goal of his career. No wonder, as it sent Salzburg through to the final, with KSC only managing a 1-1 draw through Rainer Krieg. The Pongau fans had the right instinct, their cappies became a hit.

After the final whistle, things got flowing: First in the detox pool, then at the promotion party. They sang in the dressing room: "Germany, Germany, it's all over!" "We were also a unit when it came to celebrating," grins Heimo Pfeifenberger. Back home, the team was greeted by thousands of fans, and the fire department had to clear the runway so that the stars could get through. Soccer Austria was at the feet of the Austrians. And dreaming of a big coup in the final against Inter.

Part 7:
Attempts at bribery before the home game against Inter