The Viennese team managed to draw 1:1 with WAC despite a goal from debutant Nikolaus Wurmbrand.
On Saturday, Rapid missed the chance to temporarily leap to first place in the Austrian Bundesliga. The Hütteldorfer had to settle for a 1:1 draw away against WAC, leaving them in second place, one point ahead of third-placed Wolfsberger and one point behind Sturm Graz. The champion will visit Wiener Austria on Sunday. League debutant Nikolaus Wurmbrand put Rapid in the lead (30′), with Dejan Zukic equalizing (51′).
The opening phase offered little entertainment on the soaked pitch, and it wasn’t until about 20 minutes in that chances in the penalty area began to accumulate. Zukic tested Rapid’s goalkeeper Niklas Hedl with a free-kick (21′), while on the other side, a goal by Dion Beljo was disallowed due to a razor-thin offside position of the Croatian (24′).
Six minutes later came the big moment for 18-year-old Wurmbrand. Rapid launched a counter-attack, Mamadou Sangare set the striker free, who left Nicolas Wimmer behind and beat goalkeeper Nikolas Polster with a shot into the near corner. Thus, Wurmbrand scored in his very first top-flight match of his career.
Missed Top Chance
In the 33rd minute, the ÖFB youth team player also created a clear-cut goal opportunity for Louis Schaub. Wurmbrand won a duel against Dominik Baumgartner and laid it off for Schaub, but the former Germany international hit the ball against the crossbar from close range.
This missed opportunity would prove costly after the break. WAC came out of the locker room with a great impetus and initially sought to score with long-range shots before Zukic struck. The Serbian danced past the Rapid defense after being set up by Ervin Omic and sent the ball to the far corner.
What followed was an open exchange of blows. Both teams played for the win but often lacked the necessary precision with the final pass. There were no truly decisive chances anymore, with the closest moments being a header from Nenad Cvetkovic that went just past the goal (83′), and a chance from Markus Pink that was saved by Hedl (86′). (APA)