Victory for the Styrians

SV Ried vs SK Sturm Graz LIVE from 6pm

Sturm Graz are through to the next round.(Bild: GEPA)

SK Sturm Graz are through to the last 16 of the ÖFB Cup. The defending champions won 3:1 at SV Ried on Wednesday evening. The Styrians were outnumbered from the 60th minute onwards.

Sturm Graz are through to the last 16 of the Austrian Football ÖFB Cup. The defending champions won 3:1 in a heated match away from home against second division leaders SV Ried on Wednesday, celebrating their 14th win in a row in this competition. Sturm's city rivals GAK also made it into the last 16 after a 9-0 scoreline at SVG Reichenau-Innsbruck.

Sturm had a much tougher fight on their hands. The double winners came under pressure in the early stages before they managed to break free thanks to set-pieces. First, a corner from Tomi Horvat flew straight into the goal (23'), then Seedy Jatta headed home from a Horvat corner (33'). After Jatta made it 3:0 for the visitors from a remarkable counter-attack (44'), the game seemed to be over, but Ried fought back.

(Bild: GEPA)

(Bild: GEPA)

Red card for Jatta
David Bumberger scored the equalizer with a deflected shot seconds before the break. The second half began with one or two missed set-pieces for Sturm, before a bad decision caused further tension. After a header over the bar, Mika Biereth impetuously tackled goalkeeper Andreas Leitner, incurring the wrath of several Ried players. Jatta rushed over to protect Biereth and a scuffle broke out between several players, although no real assault could be seen on the TV footage. Nevertheless, Jatta was sent off by referee Sebastian Gishamer.

Seedy Jatta was shown the red card.(Bild: GEPA)

The referee had incurred the displeasure of the Rieder team at the first goal, who complained in vain that Biereth had fouled Leitner. In addition, a few minutes before Jatta was shown a red card for a foul on Ante Bajic, the Innviertel side should have been awarded a penalty, but Gishamer's whistle remained silent. The VAR was not used in this match.

First defeat of the season for Ried
Sturm acted extremely confidently when outnumbered and allowed the home side little to no chances. The Upper Austrians thus conceded another defeat after nine consecutive wins without conceding a goal all season. Rieder are the last team to have beaten Sturm in the Cup - on October 27, 2021, the Spielvereinigung won 2:1 in Graz.