5 more rounds: That speaks for blue and white in the relegation battle

Kick-off of the decisive phase in the fight to stay in the Bundesliga! Each team crosses swords with the opposing teams exactly once again – FC Blau-Weiß Linz goes into the second half of the qualifying group with today’s home game against Altach (8.30 p.m., Hofmann Personal Stadium). This is what speaks for coach Gerald Scheiblehner’s team in what are probably the most important five rounds in the club’s history:

The starting position: Blue-White enters the decisive phase with a five-point lead over bottom of the table Austria Lustenau. And even if the points were tied, Linz would be ahead because of the asterisk they took with them after the basic round. A simple calculation would be: Even if Blue-White gets a draw in all five remaining rounds – which also includes the direct duel on May 11th at Lustenau – they would almost certainly be saved, because: Then Lustenau would have to have at least three of the remaining ones win four games and need either a win or a draw in the fourth game to be able to overtake the blue and white. The Vorarlbergers are unlikely to achieve this miracle, especially since they have only celebrated two wins in the 27 games of the season so far.

The home games: The Donaupark Stadium is to become a fortress again. In the remaining five rounds, the Linz team will play at home three times – and statistically the Royal Blues feel more comfortable there: Blue and White got 14 of the total 23 points (without division of points) at their own facility – including a win against LASK and point wins against Salzburg and Sturm Graz. Nine points were scored on foreign pitches. “We will really attack and push hard so that we can win the game. We will show everyone that we are ready for the Bundesliga,” says Simon Seidl before today’s home game. Since November 12th – the 2-0 derby win against LASK – Seidl and Co. have been waiting for complete success in the upper house. Despite the winless streak of a total of 13 games (including six home games), Blue-White can once again rely on the support of the twelfth man in today’s game: As of yesterday, 4,000 tickets had already been sold for the encounter.

The calm: Blue and White can handle pressure, and the club has proven this impressively again and again in the recent past. In the previous season they fought their way back from a disastrous start in the 2nd league and ultimately celebrated promotion to the Bundesliga in a nerve-wracking thriller on the very last matchday. And even in the country’s highest league they remained calm after just one point from the first five Bundesliga games and are not letting the long dry spell upset them. “We have already mastered much more difficult situations. After five rounds everyone had already written us off and we were the number one relegated team. Now, even after the points have been shared, we are still five points ahead,” says Blue and White coach Scheiblehner, who has a very good feeling about today despite the still tense situation: “We have to pick up where we left off. After the performance in Altach, the team also has full belief that a victory is possible.”