No points in Belgium

Our Red Bulls were beaten 0-2 on Matchday 4 of the UEFA Europa League's league phase. After  Ludwig Augustinsson gave the hosts a lead from a direct free-kick (20'), our boys struggled to get into the game and missed a golden opportunity to level via Tim Drexler in the final minutes. Anderlecht's Winkler then sealed the points on the break in the 90th minute.

20' Augustinsson pounces from free-kick

After a cautious opening phase, during which both teams spent some time feeling each other out, the hosts began to gain the upper hand around the 15-minute mark, pushing our lads deeper into their own half. In the 20th minute, an early setback came - following a foul in a promising position, Ludwig Augustinsson stepped up to take the free kick. The seasoned Swede, who boasts extensive experience in both the Bundesliga and La Liga, curled the set piece in with pinpoint precision, leaving our defence with no chance and finding the back of the net to leave us trailing.

23' & 41' No attacking threat, Zawieschitzky keeps us in match

As the match progressed, it certainly didn’t develop into a feast of high-quality football. Our team struggled to build up play, failed to find any gaps in the final third, and didn’t manage a single shot on goal before the half-time whistle.

The fact that we remained just one goal down was thanks to goalkeeper Christian Zawieschitzky. With two brilliant saves, first in the 23rd minute and again shortly before the break, when he denied another clear-cut chance for the Belgians (41'), he kept our Red Bulls in the game heading into the second half.

71‘ & 74‘ Pushing towards the end

Little changed amid the cold of Brussels after the break. Play was largely confined to the area between the two penalty boxes, though the match picked up significant momentum in the closing stages. In the 71st minute, a corner kick gave us the chance for a potential equaliser, but Haris Tabakovic’s header narrowly missed the goal. Just three minutes later, the hosts celebrated what they thought was a 2-0 lead, only for VAR to intervene and disallow the goal due to an offside position (74').

84‘ to 90' A great chance, Zawieschitzky heroics and Anderlecht winner

In the final minutes, our lads threw everything forward, and in the 84th minute, they had their best chance of the evening to equalise. A free-kick from the edge of the penalty area found its way to Tim Drexler, whose powerful first-time shot unfortunately struck the Anderlecht goalkeeper in the face. At the other end, a brilliant Christian Zawieschitzky put his body on the line to prevent a decisive second goal during a dangerous counterattack (87'), but he was ultimately left helpless against a subsequent chance from Winkler (90').

There is little time to dwell on the result, however: this coming Sunday, the team faces an away match against SK Sturm Graz in the Bundesliga - another opportunity for our lads to secure some vital points.

Enrique Aguilar (thigh), Kevin Boma (calf), Sota Kitano (ankle), John Mellberg (thigh), Justin Omoregie (ankle), Dominik Schmid (knee) and Nikolas Veratschnig (knee) were unavailable for selection. Anrie Chase was added to the squad as a replacement for Sota Kitano.