125 JAHRE SK RAPID
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02.03.2018
UNIQA ÖFB Cup

Semi-final spot secured with come from behind win

On Wednesday night, 7,200 spectators braved the bitter conditions to take their seats in the Allianz Stadium. SV Ried were in town with a place a in the semi-finals of the cup was up for grabs. For the second half of the two-part series of matches against Upper Austrian sides, Galvao returned to the starting line-up having sat out the 2:0 victory over Ried's neighbours LASK through suspension. Given the prize on offer, it was little surprise when Rapid came out of the traps quickly, looking to get on the front foot and take control of the tie. The first chance arrived when Joelinton got on the end of Murg's freekick, but Ried goalkeeping stalwart Gebauer gathered the effort (9.). Our Brazilian then tried his luck from the edge of the box, getting just a little too much purchase on his shot and lifting the ball over the bar (11.). A lively encounter unfolded, in which Galvao nearly broke the deadlock, but was again denied by the well-positioned Gebauer (30.).

The Green & Whites managed to create a series of half-chances with regularity but couldn't find the breakthrough. It looked only a matter of time until they would, but against the run of play it was Ried that broke the deadlock. Rushing off of his line, Richard Strebinger felled Chabbi, conceding a penalty. With the last kick of the half, Wießmeier made no mistake leaving Strebinger helpless with a firmly struck penalty - 0:1 and Rapid had work to do in the second half (45+1.).

Trainer Goran Djuricin was forced to withdraw struggling skipper Max Hofmann at half time, with Mario Sonnleitner coming on to deputise. The goal on the stroke had clearly given Ried impetuous, and the Innviertel side were now enjoying the upper hand. Indeed, it was the guests who nearly extended their lead in the 52nd minute, with Strebinger forced into a smart stop to deny Durmus who had broken through the Rapid rear-guard. Just minutes later the Hütteldorfers were breathing a further sigh of relief, when Fröschl somehow failed to guide a deflected cross from Chabbi into an unguarded net with the goal at his mercy (55.). With the game seemingly slipping away there was further activity on the Rapid bench, with Tamas Szanto replacing Dejan Ljubicic as the Green & Whites looked to stem the tide.  

Ex-Rapid man Philipp Prosenik then had another golden opportunity for Ried, but rushed his shot despite having found space in the box, firing wide of the target (68.). In a reversal of the first half, Ried were now in the ascendency, but it was Rapid who hit back: Wießmeier went from hero to villain as he handled Boli Bolingoli's cross inside the penalty area. Joelinton stepped up and lashed the resulting spot-kick beyond the despairing dive of Gebauer and into the bottom left-hand corner - 1:1 (75.)! The relief and celebrations ringing around Hütteldorf hadn't even begun to subside before Rapid turned the game on its head: a floated cross into the near post from Murg was met by Kvilitaia, who headed the ball home at the near post - 2:1 (77.)!

The closing stages proved nervy for Rapid, with the Hütteldorfers surviving a nail-biting moment when Chabbi sent a header just inches over the bar. But we held on, and claimed the victory along with a place in the last four of the cup! The draw for the semi-final will be made on the weekend, when Djuricin and his charges will found out who stands between them and a place in in the final in Klagenfurt! Rapid!

(gw)

Cup: SK Rapid - SV Ried 2:1 (0:1)
Allianz Stadion, 7.200 Attendance, Ref Hameter

Goals: 0:1 Wießmeier (45.+1; Penalty), 1:1 Joelinton (75., Penalty), 2:1 Kvilitaia (77.)

SK Rapid: Strebinger - Auer, M. Hofmann (46. Sonnleitner), Galvao, Bolingoli - Ljubicic (58. Szanto), Petsos - Murg, Joelinton, Schobesberger - Kvilitaia (91. Mujakic);

SV Ried: Gebauer - Kerhe, Haring, Boateng, Marcos - Wießmeier (89. Takougnadi), Grabher - Walch (66. Ziegl), Fröschl (63. Prosenik), Durmus - Chabbi;

Yellow Cards: Petsos, M. Hofmann;