Goal in the 93rd minute
Mutandwa scores twice! Ried now in the European final
Ried wins the playoff semifinal against Wolfsberger AC 2-1 after a dramatic finish and will now face SK Rapid in a two-leg series on Friday and Monday in the battle for a spot in Europe.
SV Ried is just one step away from qualifying for European competition. The promoted side prevailed 2-1 against WAC in a dramatic Bundesliga playoff semifinal on Tuesday. The season is over for Wolfsberg; Ried will battle again at home on Friday and in Vienna on Monday against Rapid for a spot in the Conference League qualifiers. The match-winner was Kingstone Mutandwa with a late brace (80th, 93rd). In between, Marco Sulzner had equalized (87th).
WAC was without forward Markus Pink. The veteran’s season is over due to a muscle injury; Erik Kojzek started in his place. Coach Thomas Silberberger also opted not to start his key player, ÖFB national team member and World Cup participant Alessandro Schöpf. With the Tyrolean in the starting lineup, WAC had won four straight games and banished the specter of relegation, but Schöpf had been plagued by a thigh injury prior to that. Silberberger cited the need to manage his players’ workload and the possibility of extra time, bringing on his key player only in the 70th minute.
Ried coach Maximilian Senft reverted to his usual lineup. In front of just 2,607 spectators, his team had more possession before halftime, but neither side created any truly compelling chances. A header by Ried’s Nikki Havenaar off a cross from Jussef Nasrawe went just wide of the goal (17th minute). At the other end, Angelo Gattermayer was fouled in the penalty area (21'), but the ball didn't go in (31'). U21 national team striker Kojzek squandered the best chance because the ball bounced too far away from him (45'+1) and was substituted at halftime.
Mutandwa outstanding
After the break, Ried stepped up the pace. A shot by Nasrawe went just over the goal (54'). Mutandwa couldn’t get the ball past WAC goalie Nikolas Polster after a solo run (64'). A shot by Ante Bajic was blocked by Nicolas Wimmer (66'), and another from a good position went over the goal (77'). Mutandwa secured the deserved lead with a header off a pinpoint cross from Oliver Steurer. But WAC fought back once more: Substitute Donis Avdijaj broke free from a corner, Dejan Zukic found Sulzner, and he placed the ball perfectly into the right corner.
Just as everything seemed to be heading for extra time in the final minute of stoppage time, Mutandwa struck again—and in spectacular fashion. The Zambian timed his run perfectly on a long ball from Bajic and calmly chipped the ball over Polster into the net. For Mutandwa, these were his 15th and 16th league goals of the season. With that, the 23-year-old surpassed the previous Bundesliga record for a Ried player held by Rene Gartler, who scored 15 goals in 2013/14. However, the European Cup playoff no longer counts toward the league’s official scoring leaderboard. Otherwise, Mutandwa would have also overtaken top scorer Otar Kiteishvili of Sturm Graz (15 goals).
WAC’s winning streak came to an end in Ried, where the Carinthians had secured their league status just ten days earlier thanks to a 1-0 victory. In their eighth match under new coach Thomas Silberberger, they suffered their second defeat. Following losses in 2023 and 2024, Wolfsberger also lost their third semifinal in the European Cup playoffs. Ried, on the other hand, bounced back after three losses in their last four matches—and can now dream of their first European Cup appearance since 2012.
Rapid awaits in the playoff final
Ried will now face Rapid in the playoff final. After the first leg on Friday (7:30 p.m.) and the second leg on Monday (5 p.m.) in Vienna, it will be decided who will compete in the second qualifying round of the Conference League next season.
SV Ried – Wolfsberger AC 2:1 (0:0)
BWT X Upper Austrian Arena
2,607 spectators, Referee Hameter
Goals:
1:0 (80.) Mutandwa
1:1 (87.) Sulzner
2:1 (93.) Mutandwa
Ried: Leitner – Havenaar, Sollbauer, Steurer – Pomer, Maart, Bajlicz, Nasrawe – Bajic, Van Wyk (84. Boguo) – Mutandwa
WAC: Polster – Baumgartner (84. Diabate), Piesinger, N. Wimmer – Wohlmuth, Sulzner, Agyemang (70. Schöpf), Matic (84. Renner) – Zukic – Gattermayer (84. Avdijaj), Kojzek (46. Chukwu)
Yellow cards: Nasrawe and Wohlmuth, N. Wimmer, Gattermayer
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