Demir Scores Twice

LIVE: Rapid Regains Three-Goal Lead

Rapid remains the team to beat in the Bundesliga.(Bild: GEPA)

The Rapid Express keeps rolling! In their home game against Austria Lustenau, the league leaders once again put on an impressive performance and celebrated a decisive 5-1 victory. Yusuf Demir scored a brace.

With their ninth win in ten games, Rapid remains in top form in the Austrian Bundesliga. The Hütteldorf side defeated newly promoted Austria Lustenau 5-1 (3-0) on Saturday at the Allianz Stadium and extended their lead at the top of the table to six points. Second-place Salzburg will visit defending champion LASK on Sunday. Ercan Kara (7th min.), Nenad Cvetkovic (8th min.), Yusuf Demir (41st min./penalty kick, 67th min.), and Marco Tilio (85th min.) scored for the hosts. Haris Ismailcebioglu (60th) scored a consolation goal for the team in 10th place.

As expected, Rapid coach Johannes Hoff Thorup stuck with the same starting lineup that had opened the game in their most recent 3-1 victory over Hartberg. And just as against the Styrians, the home team got off to a perfect start in front of 21,379 spectators, even though Petter Nosa Dahl’s finish was too weak on the first chance (4th minute). Shortly afterward, Dahl set up the opening goal with a one-touch pass to Kara following a through ball from Demir that went behind the defense. The Green-Whites’ lone striker had no trouble finishing the play. Cvetkovic, who had pushed forward, completed the one-two after Tonni Adamsen played a cross.

Lustenau Completely Overwhelmed
 Lustenauwascompletelyoff its game, couldn’t get a foothold, and was lucky that Rapid wasn’t as efficient in front of goal as before on chances by Demir (15th), Kara (22nd), Dahl (32nd), and Bendeguz Bolla (34th). It wasn’t until the 37th minute that Lustenau managed its first offensive threat, when Danilo Soares shot over the bar. At the other end, the ball found the back of the net once again. After Soares brought down Rapid’s Kara in the penalty area, Demir confidently converted the resulting penalty kick.

Yusus Demir converted a penalty kick.(Bild: GEPA)

  Almost immediately afterward, Rapid nearly brought some excitement back into the game thanks to a gift from the opposition. However, goalie Niklas Hedl made up for a mistake by Serge-Philippe Raux Yao. Raux Yao had carelessly lost the ball to Lustenau’s top scorer, Dominik Weixelbraun, in the penalty area; from there, Weixelbraun passed to Antonio Verinac, who missed the chance (43').

After the restart, the Viennese initially kept the game under control but posed slightly less of a scoring threat. After an hour, Dahl was first denied by Domenik Schierl, before Jannes Horn hit the crossbar with the follow-up shot. Lustenau quickly switched gears, and Ismailcebioglu—who had come on as a substitute just moments earlier—coolly finished a counterattack following a through ball from Gmeiner. Soares missed the chance to pull one back (62').

(Bild: GEPA)

Demir’s First Brace Since April 2021
The hosts quickly regained their composure, however, and sealed the victory for good. Demir headed a cross from Horn over the line from point-blank range. It was his second brace in a Rapid jersey, following the one in the 4-0 win over WSG Tirol in April 2021. Another header by Kara hit the crossbar (72'). Tilio put the finishing touch on the game after a successful transition play.

For Rapid, it was their sixth consecutive competitive win and an ideal dress rehearsal ahead of the two upcoming Vienna derbies. On Tuesday, they’ll face second-division title contender Vienna in the Cup round of 16 at the Hohe Warte, followed on Sunday by an away league match against their struggling archrival Austria. For Lustenau, this marked their third consecutive league game without a point—not a promising sign ahead of Thursday’s Cup round of 16 match against Sturm Graz.

SK Rapid – SC Austria Lustenau 5–1 (3–0)
Vienna, Allianz Stadium, 21,379 spectators, Referee Altmann.

Goals: 1 :0 (7.) Kara, 2:0 (8.) Cvetkovic, 3:0 (41.) Y. Demir (penalty), 3:1 (60.) Ismailcebioglu, 4:1 (67.) Y. Demir, 5:1 (85.) Tilio

Rapid: Hedl – Bolla, Cvetkovic, Raux-Yao, Horn (84' Roka) – Bajlicz (84' Schaub), M. Seidl – Y. Demir (89' Wurmbrand), Adamsen, Dahl (75' Tilio) – Kara (75' M. Haidara)

Lustenau: Schierl – Gmeiner, Voisine, Pertlwieser, Soares – Weixelbraun (76' Maak), Afrifa (56' Ismailcebioglu), Grabher (76' Ibertsberger), S. Diarra (76. Conateh), Gashi – Verinac (56. Jastremski)

Yellow cards: None / Voisine, Soares, Gashi