Before the Fiorentina duel

Katzer: Rapid simply “don’t have ten Wurmbrands”!

Rapids sporting director Markus Katzer(Bild: Krone KREATIV/gepa)

SK Rapid are currently going through a sporting slump - but after the 2-0 home defeat against LASK there is no time to lick their wounds, the next highlight awaits on Thursday with the home game against AC Fiorentina in the Conference League (CoL)! "It's a really, really cool opponent," said Rapids' sporting director Markus Katzer. He also addressed the criticism that the Whites and Greens pay little attention to Austrian talent. "We wouldn't put up much of a fight if we played with ten Wurmbrands. But the fact is, the ten Wurmbrands simply don't exist."

Two years ago, the Hütteldorfer were knocked out of the CoL qualifiers against the Florentines, but won the first leg at home 1:0. Matthias Seidl is one of the players who was there back then. "Those were really close matches," recalled the Rapid captain, who was one of eleven Austrians in coach Zoran Barisic's Rapid starting XI for the first leg in 2023. Since then, the face of the team has changed considerably: The coach is now Peter Stöger, who usually only has two or three red-white-red kickers in the starting line-up.

Matthias Seidl(Bild: GEPA pictures)

Quality instead of nationality
Katzer knows why this is the case. "It's due to the situation. Back then, we were still sticking to the Austrian pot, so we made sure we only had six foreigners. That automatically meant more Austrians playing," explained the sports director. Hütteldorf has since moved away from the Austrian pot because: "We don't take nationality into account now, but quality. And the fact is that the good Austrians simply take the leap abroad at some point and you can't keep them."

Professionals such as Leopold Querfeld and Marco Grüll are now playing in Germany, Nikolas Sattlberger in Belgium. Departures like these mean you have to look elsewhere, "otherwise you can't compete for the top spots in Austria or on the international stage," said Katzer. One possibility is legionnaires, who often offer an interesting cost-benefit ratio.

Markus Katzer(Bild: GEPA pictures)

"When I look at the players we've brought in from a 2nd division, for example Serge-Philippe Raux-Yao from the French 2nd division or Isak Jansson, who came from the 2nd division in Spain. These are players who think the Austrian Bundesliga is cool and also see it as a 'step', because we are also a stepping stone league. If you then play internationally, the players can recommend themselves," says Katzer. The income from selling on is crucial for clubs. "You definitely get better value for money."

"No ten Wurmbrands"
 The 45-year-old also emphasized that the performance principle applies at a club like Rapid. They don't have the task of "letting the most Austrians play". Rather: "Here I have the task of winning something, playing internationally and selling high." The Bundesliga is, after all, "a sales league". Of course you want to promote Austrian soccer and home-grown players. "But we can't pull them out of a hat, we can only place those who have the performance level to be successful."

Nikolaus Wurmbrand(Bild: GEPA)

Nikolaus Wurmbrand achieved this most recently, and Furkan Demir is on the cusp of doing so. "Our goal at Rapid is to place as many players as possible from our own young talent. But I can't take that into consideration if the quality isn't right," said Katzer. "We wouldn't put up any resistance if we played with ten Wurmbrands. But the fact is, the ten Wurmbrands simply don't exist." There is talent at Rapid II, "but it's not the case that you say you have eleven on the pitch where you have the fantasy that they will end up playing for Rapid in the first team."

In addition to Seidl, keeper Niklas Hedl and Jonas Auer from the 2023 squad that started against Fiorentina are still at Rapid, with the latter fighting for a place in the squad. Katzer is not entirely sure whether the new green and white squad will be able to play on an equal footing against the Serie A club. "The fact is that Fiorentina have a really good team and are the favorites. But I believe that we can definitely compete in our own stadium with the fans behind us." Around 27,000 spectators are expected.