FC Red Bull Salzburg
·1 October 2024
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Yahoo sportsFC Red Bull Salzburg
·1 October 2024
Our second league phase match in the UEFA Champions League saw us beaten 0-4, even if our Red Bulls put in a very different performance against Stade Brest than they did in Prague. Several missed chances for our boys and three late goals conceded out of nowhere left for another evening to forget.
A fluent start led to Mads Bidstrup having a shot saved by the goalkeeper from a Dedic ball into the box, and we soon got a chance to celebrate! The ball was headed by an opposing defender onto Samson Baidoo on the ground, and our centre-back deflected it into the net – but Lucas Gourna-Douath was standing in the goalkeeper's way in an offside position, and VAR ruled the effort out.
Our Red Bulls - and the more than 20,000 fans who came to noisily support us in the Arena – could sense a result was possible tonight. Further opportunities fell by the minute as Dedic curled the ball just over (16') before Konate went close from a tight angle (19').
We were enjoying the one-way traffic from our boys, but football being football, we conceded against the run of play. We failed to get our challenges in on the break, and suddenly Abdallah Sima broke behind our backline. His shot went through Amar Dedic's legs as the French side gained the lead (24').
We battled back well enough from that blow, and shortly before the break, we penned the visitors under another wave of pressure. After Gloukh had possibly our best chance in the 37th minute, Bidstrup also found the ball when free in the penalty area, but he couldn't get enough behind the ball (40'). We therefore went into the break 0-1 down, when we could have so easily seen a different scoreline.
At the start of the second half, we suddenly found the going tough again as Les Ti'Zefs took charge of the play for the first sustained spell of the evening. Referee Anthony Taylor's hard line also ensured for lots of stoppages and disrupted the flow of the play.
We kept on working our way into the encounter as we hunted the equaliser, but it just would not come! Gloukh (55') and Bobby Clark (58') both had big chances to make it 1-1, but just like in the first half, it fell at the wrong end all of a sudden! We weren't able to stop a break from Eric Roy's side and Mahdi Camara was suddenly able to convert a shot from a central position (66'). As if that wasn't enough, a failure to clear a ball minutes later allowed for Abdallah Sima to make it 3-0 (70').
The Breton pirates weren't finished with that loot though and went and grabbed another goal. Pereira Lage was left alone just outside the area to fire in for 0-4 (75'). When we had been pushing for an equaliser just minutes before, we were now engaged in a damage limitation exercise. It was an incredibly disappointing Champions League evening, which just would not go our way.
We have no alternative other than picking ourselves up as soon as possible. This Sunday, 6 October (17:00 CEST) we have to be right back on it in a huge match at Sturm Graz in the Austrian Bundesliga. Our next chance for elusive Champions League points comes on Wednesday 23 October as we host Dinamo Zagreb at the Red Bull Arena.
It was an evening to forget. Conceding four goals in a match like that is just too much. We have to shake it off and look forward. It won't help us to rue it, as we still have a long season ahead of us. It was just a disappointing evening.
Amar Dedic
It is incredible that we lost 0-4. We made a good start and had the game well under control - then we conceded. We started well again in the second half, but didn't get the goal we needed. To then concede three more goals was just careless. We have to put the match behind us quickly, as we have the next league match ahead in a few days!
Leandro Morgalla
If you are not good enough in either area, don't score and give goals away so easily, then it's difficult. It would have been a very different game if we had scored in the first half. Now we have to show a reaction on Sunday!
Mads Bidstrup
Capaldo for Bidstrup, Nene for Clark (both 61'), Blank for Baidoo, Bajcetic for Morgalla, Diambou for Gourna-Douath (all 77')
Gloukh (18' dissent), Baidoo (62' tactical foul), Daghim (86' foul)
Not available for the match were Fernando (thigh), Daouda Guindo (metatarsal), Takumu Kawamura (knee), Maurits Kjaergaard (ankle) and Aleksa Terzic (thigh).