The promoted team led 1-0 before the Graz team fixed their home win in stoppage time.
Sturm Graz happily consolidated its standing as number two in the current Bundesliga season on Sunday. Thanks to a goal from Gregory Wüthrich in the 94th minute, the Styrians achieved a 2-1 home win against newly promoted Austria Klagenfurt. So the dress rehearsal before the start of the Europa League group stage on Thursday away at the French top club AS Monaco was successful. For Sturm, it's the group stage comeback after a ten-year absence.
After two draws against Austria (2: 2) and Admira (1: 1), Graz returned to winning ways and ensured that the seven-point deficit on Leader Salzburg did not become even greater after the 7th round. For Sturm it was the fifth success against a newly promoted team, in the 7th round of the league they were the only team to win in front of their own audience. Sturm is now unbeaten eight competitive games. Jakob Jantscher (31st) equalized the Klagenfurt Blitzführung by Christopher Cvetko (3rd) with a penalty.
Perfect start
Sturm coach Christian Ilzer changed his starting formation compared to the 1-1 at Admira in two positions, Jusuf Gazibegovic (for Lukas Jäger) and Jantscher, who got fit in time (instead of Jon Gorenc-Stankovic, who was spared at the beginning), were new. With the Carinthians Lennart Moser replaced his banned compatriot Philipp Menzel in the gate. In addition, left-back Till Schumacher and striker Florian Rieder were allowed to try their hand at the starting line-up.
The start could not have gone better for Austria. After a Gemicibasi corner, Cvetko rose the highest and hit his head via a touchdown. Storm goalie Jörg Siebenhandl was on, but could not control the anything but untenable ball. The newcomer took the momentum with him, was aggressive in the fight against the ball and always switched quickly and dangerously. In the 17th minute, a degree from Markus Pink went over it with his heel. A minute after Kelvin Yeboah became dangerous for Sturm for the first time, a Greil long-range shot was just blocked (22nd).
So the compensation wasn't really in the air, but it fell anyway. Michael Blauensteiner got the ball in the penalty area and referee Walter Altmann immediately pointed to the penalty spot. The decision also withstood the VAR check and Jantscher used it confidently. That was a wake-up call for the home side, who, driven by the 8,070 fans, found their way into the game better and were suddenly closer to the opening goal. A Dante low shot just missed (39th), with a Sarkaria long shot Moser was on the post (41st).
An angry pacult
In the second half, too, the Graz team almost got a cold shower. Pink failed with a header from the five after Rieder-Flanke on this time brilliantly reacting Siebenhandl (50th). Otherwise the Graz team did more for the game. The inclusion of Gorenc Stankovic and Otar Kiteishvili, who was also recently ailing, also had a positive effect. The Georgians in particular caused enormous problems for the people of Klagenfurt.
In the 72nd minute he found his master in Moser, then he twice passed the leather past the case (83rd, 87th). In between, Kelvin Yeboah had also shown his skills with an acrobatic degree (77th). When everyone was already speculating with the final whistle, the Graz team struck. Wüthrich finished a nice combination over Sarkaria and Kiteishvili with a massive finish in the penalty area. It was practically the last action, Klagenfurt coach Peter Pacult immediately left the pitch very angry.
