LASK Linz 3-1 SK Rapid result, stats and report

AEK Athens edged LASK Linz 1-0 in their UEFA Champions League fixture thanks to a Răzvan Marin free kick on 21 minutes, with the Greeks keeping a clean sheet despite a feisty, card-filled contest in Athens.

Christoph Lang scored twice inside nineteen minutes to set LASK Linz on their way to a commanding 3-0 win over Rheindorf Altach, with Florian Flecker adding a late third to complete a thoroughly deserved clean sheet.

Salzburg put on a ruthless display at home, hammering SK Rapid 5-1 with a blistering first half that killed the contest before it had really started. Haris Tabakovic scored twice inside 21 minutes and the result was never seriously in doubt.

LASK Linz produced a controlled and ultimately commanding performance to eliminate Celtic from the UEFA Champions League, with 40 shots and a relentless crossing pattern exposing the visitors' defensive structure across 120 minutes.

Hartberg have not won a home league game in nine attempts, and LASK Linz arrive on the back of five consecutive victories. The structural mismatch here is significant.

SK Rapid sit top of the Austrian Bundesliga with a maximum nine points from three games, but Friday evening's visit of a WSG Tirol side without an away win in five attempts offers more than a routine home fixture. The patterns underneath the surface of this match tell a more interesting story.

LASK Linz arrive at Merkur Arena with a perfect record in the Austrian Bundesliga but precious little top-flight experience to draw on. Sturm Graz, carrying injury concerns and inconsistent form, will look to expose exactly that.

SK Rapid arrive at Wolfsberger sitting top of the Austrian Bundesliga with a goal difference of plus ten from three games, while the hosts have quietly built one of the division's most stubborn home records. Something has to give.