Sturm's head of sport:

“I hope we finalize it right away in Linz!”

Fighting for a point with ten men despite being outnumbered - Sturm were clearly overjoyed.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

With a lot of morale, Sturm fought for a 1-1 draw against Hartberg while short-handed and were rewarded for their show of moral strength: after Salzburg's 2-0 loss at Rapid, the Blackies now have a four-point lead. The first match point on Sunday at LASK can already be used to secure the double.

"Now we only need one more win to win the title!" Sturm's sporting director Andreas Schicker clenched his fist in the VIP Club, where he had watched the 2-0 defeat of runners-up Salzburg against Rapid on TV together with several club officials. "I'd be lying if I said we weren't delighted!"

Even though it had only been enough for a 1:1 draw against Hartberg, the performance of his Blackies could not be overestimated in view of the match film: "One down after eight minutes, then 0:1 behind - the way the team corrected that while outnumbered was impressive. Not many other teams manage to win with ten men without their captain. I wouldn't have thought that our situation would even improve. An impressive reaction that makes me really proud. But this process has been years in the making. With Wüthrich, Kiteishvili, Prass, Böving, Biereth and the others, we now have many leaders who lead the way when things get stuck. We also overcame a deficit in the cup final. The team is hungry and believes in itself. And it has the crowd behind it, which steps in when things get tight and acted like the eleventh man after Stankovic's exclusion."

After the cup-winning shower, sporting director Andreas Schicker is now hoping for a big championship celebration.

(Bild: Sepp Pail)

Schicker doesn't want to judge whether Salzburg will break now: "I'm just happy that we're four points ahead and still have everything in our own hands. One win is enough for us now! And I hope that we finalize it right away in Linz - although in good Styrian terms, I don't care when it happens."

After a medical window on Monday, Tuesday is off - Wednesday is the first non-English week in a long time and preparation for LASK begins.

The title could not be valued highly enough for Schicker: "If you know what financial resources Salzburg, who have always been champions since 2011, have, that would be an incredible achievement. But we've put ourselves in a great starting position and it's no coincidence that we have the momentum on our side."

As in the cup final, Biereth (right) & Co. were not unsettled by falling behind.

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Schicker doesn't want to talk about the double and the 18 million euros of the Champions League until it's done: "We'll keep our feet on the ground, but of course we really want to bring this trophy to Graz and then listen to the Champions League anthem. Even if that probably won't happen in Graz."

Schicker does not want to reveal whether he will still be there (or already in Hoffenheim): "I will never say never, because it's incredible fun with this team, but there will be no confessions from me, because soccer is what it is."