Show of spirit

Goalscorers: Koita (65'), Aaronson (72'), Sucic (90+4'); Teigl (59')

10.02.2021 • FC Red Bull Salzburg

After our flawless results in recent weeks we faced a real challenge tonight. We fell 0-1 down but showed all our spirit to race back and seal a 3-1 win.

match summary

The snowflakes were dancing down from the Salzburg night sky as the referee got the game underway. We wanted a repeat of our win at the weekend, and the visitors wanted revenge. Austria Vienna put in a sharper and more ambitious showing than was the case at the weekend. After three minutes of play, Sakaria charged through on the left and turned the ball into Teigl, who was completely free in the penalty box. His shot beat Stankovic but was scrambled away from the goal line by Oumar Solet.

That rattled our boys into action, as they became more active and pushed continually through the middle. Sekou Koita got the ball just outside the box and waltzed inside the area. He did everything perfectly apart from the finish, as he sent the ball just wide. He was annoyed, quite rightly, as was Mo Camara, who went close from distance.

Jesse Marsch was abuzz on the touchline and often had to be led back to his coaching zone by the fourth official. Our coach wanted more bite in our pressing, especially in the first line. 35 minutes had been played, the wind was sending the snow swirling around, and the opponents seemed to have a good foothold in the game. It was clearly going to be a tough slog.

BL-16: RBS vs. FAK

We can only speculate, of course, but looking at how our side tore into the second period, you had the distinct feeling some harsh words were said at half-time. We created some danger from a corner in the first minute of the second period, before Mergim Berisha truly tested the goalkeeper after Noah Okafor drilled the ball across. It was a tense moment in the game, and it ended up with a real blow. The visitors suddenly switched the ball to the far post as they broke with numbers. Teigl took aim from the cross from Poulsen immediately, and sent the ball right into the net (59').

That shook things up. Now it was time for us to exact revenge. Sekou Koita, the biggest livewire of the evening, took the ball from substitute Daka and smashed it in to level (65'). You could see our team were now sensing blood. The chances came by the minute, first to Sladdi, and then to Brenden - and boy did he make the most of it! He cut inside like a young Arjen Robben and slotted his shot delicately inside the far post leaving Pentz a mere onlooker (72'). We therefore turned the match around in the space of just seven minutes.

We continued to dominate the possession, albeit the chances were a little less frequent. There was a little scuffle after a foul at Andi Ulmer that brought Karim Adeyemi a yellow card. There would be one more goal though. Luka Sucic pounced for his first goal in the Tipico Bundesliga. We therefore took a 3-1 win under the snow.

views

Jesse Marsch:

We reacted well after conceding. Until that point I was pleased with the performance, more or less. We then stepped up another gear and showed what makes us stand out. We showed mentality and fearlessness. I'm pleased for the two guys to get their first goals. I am sure that we will see a lot more from Brenden and Luka.

Brenden Aaronson:

It was fantastic to be there for the team. Austria really tested us, and it was therefore a really important win. Our mentality was the key to our success today. The confidence we gained in recent weeks carried us through when we went behind.