"We're Ready to Go All In Again"

With an impressive run of five consecutive league matches without a defeat, LASK made a strong comeback in the spring. "We started the new year very well and were unbeaten until the Sturm game," said midfielder Ivan Ljubic, who has started every match since his return in the Cup against Salzburg, following the 2-4 loss on Sunday at SK Sturm, in a Sky interview. Despite this strong run, LASK narrowly missed out on their sixth appearance in the Championship Group in seven years, mainly due to their slow start to the season. "We had 22 rounds to gather points. We didn’t do as well as six other teams, so we have to congratulate them," said head coach Markus Schopp.

However, the focus is not on the past but on the upcoming challenges. The goal is to continue the positive development since the winter break: In the spring, Linz has earned the third-most points of all teams, with three consecutive wins before the match in Graz. The Athletikers are also ranked third since Schopp's appointment as head coach. Moreover, their comeback qualities speak for themselves: They have already earned 17 points this season after trailing. "We’ve stabilized defensively, and offensively we’re getting better. We shouldn’t fear anyone, we have a good team with great quality, and we need to continue showing that," emphasized Ljubic.

Spring Table

1.	FK Austria Wien	6	4	1	1	10:5	13
2.	RB Salzburg	6	3	3	0	7:3	12
3.	LASK	6	3	2	1	8:7	11
4.	Wolfsberger AC	6	3	1	2	13:7	10
5.	FC Blau-Weiß Linz	6	3	1	2	10:8	10
6.	SK Sturm Graz	6	3	1	2	11:12	10

Schopp shares this view, as he wants to continue the path of the past weeks: "In the spring, we managed to develop in a direction where we had a good balance and where we were very clear in creating goal-scoring opportunities. This is the direction we want to continue developing in," explained the 51-year-old.

Moreover, the goals are not getting any smaller: Through the qualification group, which they currently lead with a two-point advantage after the points split, there is a chance to qualify for the national European Cup play-off (more information on the format). On April 2, the Athletikers will face Wolfsberger AC in the Raiffeisen Arena for a spot in the Cup final (secure your tickets now). "You can take a lot from such a moment, you just have to embrace the situation," emphasized Schopp, who also gave two more young talents their Bundesliga debut against Sturm: 19-year-old homegrown player Armin Midzic and winger Queyrell Tchicamboud (19). Modou Keba Cisse scored his first Bundesliga goal in his fourth appearance, a beautiful one at that.

The Table Under Head Coach Markus Schopp

1.	FK Austria Wien	17	12	2	3	29:14	38
2.	SK Sturm Graz	17	10	4	3	41:24	34
3.	LASK	17	8	4	5	27:22	28
4.	Wolfsberger AC	17	8	3	6	30:21	27
5.	FC Blau-Weiß Linz	17	8	2	7	22:19	26
6.	RB Salzburg	17	6	8	3	18:16	26

Meiste Einsätze:	George Bello	22 Einsätze
Meiste Spielminuten:	George Bello	1881 Spielminuten
Meiste Tore:	Maximilian Entrup	7 Tore
Meiste Assists:	Robert Zulj	4 Assists
Höchster Sieg:	LASK vs. Austria Klagenfurt	4:0
Längste Serie:	Runden 17 bis 21	5 Spiele ungeschlagen
Meiste Zuschauer:	LASK vs. Blau-Weiß Linz	19.080 Zuschauer
Zuschauerschnitt:	11 Heimspiele	13.300 Zuschauer

Schedule & Mode

Tickets Semifinal ÖFB-Cup