LASK began their first Champions League league-phase campaign with a narrow defeat in Athens. Razvan Marin scored the only goal of the night in the 21st minute, curling a superb direct free-kick beyond Lukas Jungwirth.
The scoreline made the contest appear closer than it felt for long spells. LASK certainly had opportunities to equalise and remained in contention until the final action, but AEK tested Didi Kühbauer’s team with a combination of dynamism, aggression and relentless commitment in the duels that the Austrians had not previously had to deal with this season.
AEK set the tone from the outset
Kühbauer stuck with his familiar 3-5-2, which turned into a 5-3-2 without the ball. Melayro Bogarde, Robert Ljubicic and Sascha Horvath were tasked with providing control and aggression in midfield, while Christoph Lang and Moses Usor looked to attack the space in behind.
LASK’s game plan quickly became apparent. Andrés Andrade repeatedly looked for Usor with long, vertical passes in an attempt to bypass AEK’s first pressing line and attack the space behind the defence immediately. It worked on occasion, but LASK were rarely able to turn those moments into sustained spells of pressure.
AEK were far more assertive around second balls. Marin and Milán Vitális covered enormous ground in midfield, Lovro Majer frequently drifted inside from the right and Aboubakary Koita repeatedly went looking for one-on-one situations on the opposite flank, an area in which LASK struggled throughout. Up front, Luka Jovic and Barnabás Varga continually occupied the back three. Within the opening few minutes, a high turnover created a major opportunity for Jovic, only for Jungwirth to make an excellent save.
Marin punishes a small mistake
The breakthrough came from precisely the mixture of pressure and individual quality that characterised AEK’s performance. Bogarde was forced to stop Koita just outside the penalty area before Marin whipped the resulting free-kick from the left into the top corner. It went towards the goalkeeper’s side, but the precision and pace left Jungwirth with little chance.
It was one of the small details Kühbauer would later refer to: a brief loss of control, a duel that went AEK’s way and a foul conceded in a dangerous position. At Champions League level, that proved enough.
LASK then had to ensure they did not concede a second before the interval. Varga capitalised on another high turnover and was almost through one-on-one, only for Bogarde to recover with an excellent sprint. Shortly afterwards, LASK created their best chance of the first half. Lang found himself clear in front of Alberto Brignoli following a quick combination, but the AEK goalkeeper came out on top. At the other end, Varga headed wide when well placed to double the lead.
LASK’s most intense test so far
The striking aspect was not simply that LASK had spells without the ball, but how little time AEK allowed them after turnovers. Compared with the second leg against Celtic and the Austrian Bundesliga opposition LASK have faced so far, this was a different level of energy. AEK attacked second balls more aggressively, counter-pressed immediately after losing possession and maintained a very high tempo in the individual battles.
In terms of dynamism and the constant physical and mental demands placed on them, Marko Nikolic’s team were LASK’s toughest opponent of the season so far. Against Celtic, LASK had gradually established greater control after a strong opening spell in the return leg. AEK never really allowed the game to settle into a similar rhythm.
Vitális played an especially important role, constantly covering short distances in midfield and closing the gaps behind Marin and Majer. Right-back Lazaros Rota also pushed forward very aggressively and repeatedly prevented George Bello from establishing a consistently high starting position on LASK’s left.
That often left LASK with the direct route towards Usor or Lang, making their attacks easier for AEK to anticipate. Vitális’ running and Rota’s disciplined tactical display were key reasons why LASK struggled to gain the upper hand against an intelligent and experienced Greek side.
LASK improve after the break
LASK produced their best spell shortly after half-time. Bello and Horvath combined down the left before Horvath broke into the penalty area, only to be denied by Brignoli’s outstretched foot. The Austrians began to push higher up the pitch and showed greater courage when playing through midfield.
AEK nevertheless remained dangerous in transition. Jovic even appeared to make it 2-0 following a move involving Koita and Majer, but the goal was ruled out for offside earlier in the attack.
Kühbauer then introduced Florian Flecker and Alessandro Schöpf, two experienced players who helped provide more balance, before Sasa Kalajdzic replaced Lang to make his comeback.
The statistics reflected the nature of the contest. AEK led the shot count 18-11 and registered 25 touches in the opposition penalty area to LASK’s 14, while the expected-goals figures stood at 1.59 to 0.81. LASK did create chances, but they had to work significantly harder for each of them.
Kalajdzic misses late chance to equalise
AEK dropped slightly deeper in the closing stages, giving LASK a little more space. The major opportunity, however, did not arrive until stoppage time. A corner was only partially cleared and the ball fell to Kalajdzic, who won the aerial duel but headed narrowly over the crossbar.
It was another chance that needs to be converted at this level and, in many ways, summed up a LASK performance that showed promise but also revealed a certain lack of maturity.
Kühbauer summed up the game afterwards: “We lost the match because of small details. AEK are a good team with a lot of international experience. They handled those moments very professionally. You could see today that we are still lacking experience at this level, even though the team kept trying everything until the very end.”
AEK coach Nikolic described it as “a very hard, very difficult game against an opponent with great intensity”. The Serbian was particularly pleased with his team’s tactical performance and felt AEK should have put the game beyond LASK with a second goal. He also explained his decision to wait before making substitutions by pointing to how well his starting XI were executing the game plan.
Real and City open with victories
Elsewhere on the opening Tuesday of the Champions League season, several contests were decided by fine margins. Real Madrid beat Inter 2-1 in the headline fixture, with Kylian Mbappé and Federico Valverde scoring for the Spanish side. Manchester City won 2-0 away to FC Porto thanks to an Erling Haaland brace.
Borussia Dortmund edged Villarreal 3-2, while Betis Sevilla came from behind twice before completing a 3-2 away victory in Lille. Aston Villa also recorded a 3-2 win on the road against Club Brugge.
