The league leaders impressed above all with the quality of their collective performance. Rapid pressed with intensity, were quicker into many of the duels and attacked with purpose whenever they won possession. LASK failed to register a single shot on target across the 90 minutes and only managed to put the visitors under sustained pressure in brief spells.
Rapid unchanged as LASK go with two up front
Johannes Hoff Thorup named the same starting XI that had beaten WSG Tirol 3-0. Niklas Hedl started in goal behind a back four of Bendegúz Bolla, Nenad Cvetković, Serge-Philippe Raux-Yao and Jannes-Kilian Horn. Matthias Seidl and Nicolas Bajlicz formed the central midfield pairing, with Yusuf Demir, Tonni Adamsen and Petter Nosa Dahl operating behind Kara.
LASK lined up in a 5-3-2 with Saša Kalajdžić and Christoph Lang leading the attack. Sascha Horvath was tasked with providing the link from midfield, while wing-backs Kasper Jørgensen and George Bello offered width.
The tactical contrast was evident from the opening stages. Rapid frequently pressed LASK’s build-up with several players at once and immediately pushed forward once the first pass had been played. That prevented the hosts from settling in possession. LASK looked to find Kalajdžić and Lang quickly after turnovers, but Rapid’s counterpressing made it difficult for them to exploit those moments consistently.
Rapid repeatedly go close to opener
The visitors created the first major chance. After eight minutes, Bolla delivered an accurate cross into the box and Kara met it first time, sending his effort against the crossbar.
Rapid’s superiority became even clearer in the 18th minute. Dahl did well to drive forward, Adamsen took over and played the ball into Kara, but the striker could not bring it under control cleanly just in front of the six-yard box. The move remained alive, however, with Adamsen then finding Demir on the left. The winger struck first time with his weaker foot but could not beat Jungwirth.
Seidl was central to Rapid’s command of the game. The captain provided cover behind the attacking players, stepped forward aggressively in the counterpress and repeatedly helped launch the next attack after possession was regained. That collective reaction to losing the ball was one of Rapid’s biggest strengths: whenever one player was dispossessed, several team-mates were usually close enough to respond immediately.
LASK nevertheless thought they had taken the lead in the 39th minute when Kalajdžić finished off a combination, but Jørgensen had strayed narrowly offside earlier in the move. The goal was ruled out after a VAR review.
Shortly before half-time, Dahl forced Jungwirth into another strong save. The goalless scoreline at the interval was therefore rather flattering for LASK.
Kara rewards Rapid’s dominant display
Rapid returned after the break with the same intensity. The visitors pushed high up the pitch, won numerous second balls and repeatedly forced LASK into rushed decisions.
The deserved breakthrough finally arrived in the 58th minute. Seidl switched play to Bolla on the right, and the full-back drilled a low ball across the six-yard box. Kara got there ahead of his marker and was initially denied by Jungwirth, but reacted immediately to turn the rebound over the line for 1-0.
The goal reflected the pattern of the match. Rapid had created the more dangerous situations throughout and were far more decisive in the final third. Kara constantly occupied LASK’s centre-backs and capped an energetic individual display with the opening goal.
LASK pose greater threat from crosses
After falling behind, LASK began to take more risks. Dietmar Kühbauer introduced Moses Usor and Yvan Dibango, followed later by Samuel Adeniran and Alessandro Schöpf, and the hosts began to spend more time around Rapid’s penalty area.
Their biggest threat now came from set pieces and crosses. Kalajdžić had a good opportunity in the 72nd minute but could not direct his effort on target, while Jørgensen and Tornich also found themselves in promising positions later on.
Rapid defended this spell with impressive collective discipline. Cvetković and Raux-Yao dealt with plenty in the centre, the midfielders tracked back diligently, and Hedl ultimately did not have to make a single save. LASK enjoyed more territorial presence, but were unable to turn it into enough genuine danger.
Thorup’s substitutes make an immediate impact
In the 81st minute, Thorup sent on Louis Schaub for Dahl and Mbuyi for Kara. Less than a minute later, both substitutions had already played their part.
Schaub received the ball centrally and switched it out to Demir on the right. The winger drove towards the byline before firing a low pass into the middle, where Mbuyi timed his run perfectly and converted for 2-0.
The second goal also underlined the depth of Rapid’s squad. Schaub was involved in the move almost immediately after coming on, Mbuyi scored with virtually his first contribution and Demir capped an excellent individual performance with the assist.
From that point on, Rapid were in complete control. LASK had no response and were unable to seriously trouble the visitors in the closing minutes.
Rapid stay top
The numbers reinforced the impression of an outstanding Rapid performance. The visitors finished with 62 per cent possession, led the shot count 13-10 and held a clear 2.41-0.90 advantage in expected goals. The fact that LASK failed to direct any of their ten attempts on target was another reflection of the league leaders’ concentrated defensive work.
Rapid’s victory was not simply built on strong individual performances from Seidl, Demir, Bolla or Kara, but above all on an excellent team display. Their pressing worked, their structure after turnovers remained secure and they attacked quickly and directly whenever they regained possession.
With 21 points from eight matches, Rapid remain top of the table and now sit three points clear of Salzburg. Since their 5-1 defeat in Salzburg, the Vienna side have won three consecutive league games without conceding, further underlining the strength of their start to the season.
Rapid are back in action at home to Hartberg on Friday. LASK host Liverpool in the Champions League on Wednesday before travelling to Austria Lustenau on Saturday.
