Three points are crucial if autumn champions are to add winter crown!
Preview: Round 21 - tipp3-Bundesliga powered by T-Mobile. Red Bull Salzburg v SV Josko Ried 06 December 2008 – 6:00 pm, Red Bull Arena.
The Red Bulls have the chance to conclude a record breaking year at the Red Bull Arena in style this Saturday with their sixteenth win in their eighteenth home match.
Throughout 2008, Salzburg mostly soared to success at the Red Bull Arena with the occasional spectacular slip up along the way. In the 17 home matches of the calendar year they only collected wins or losses without a single home draw.
A win this Saturday for the ´Autumn Champions´ will move them a step closer to becoming kings of the Austrian winter by topping the table as the league enters the winter break.
Their Upper Austrian opponents have struggled away from Ried this season, with just eight goals away from home (only Mattersburg have been even less prolific on their travels, with six goals).
Those eight goals have unsurprisingly brought scant reward. Ried have won just once away, drawn twice and have been defeated seven times. Their only consolation is that many of these away defeats have been close affairs.
Ried's chances are to be written off with extreme caution, however. They are one of the strongest teams in the league from set pieces. Drechsel and Lexa are excellent marksmen while Burgstaller is superb in the air.
Ried also certainly know how to find the target from distance, which means Salzburg can never be too complacent when the ball is at their opponents´ feet. They have a trio of agile wingmen in Ulmer, Kujabi and Lexa who are a constant threat on the break.
The Red Bulls should, however, be able to extend their strong record against Ried, having won four times and drawn once in their past six meetings.
Salzburg’s Red Bull Arena record is even more impressive. Six wins in seven matches with four 2-0 wins strikes an imposing sequence.
Red Bull Salzburg v SV Josko Fenster Ried, the previous seven home matches:
23/08/08 Red Bull Salzburg 2–1 SV Josko Ried 07/12/07 Red Bull Salzburg 2–0 SV Josko Ried 11/08/07 Red Bull Salzburg 2–0 SV Josko Ried 18/04/07 Red Bull Salzburg 2–0 SV Josko Ried 01/10/06 Red Bull Salzburg 1–1 SV Josko Ried 13/04/06 Red Bull Salzburg 3–0 SV Josko Ried 01/10/05 Red Bull Salzburg 2–0 SV Josko Ried
