Austria Bundesliga ECl Playoff, Monday, 26.05.2025 at 19:00
The format of the Austrian Bundesliga adds a special thrill to the national competition and treats viewers to knockout games at the end of the season with a view to the Conference League playoffs.
In my LASK Hartberg tip for the semi-final, I favor the home side, whose defense will play the key role. At Admiral, I’m betting on odds of 2.70 for “Hartberg under 0.5 goals.”
LASK and Hartberg have already faced each other four times this season. The Linz-based club avoided defeat in each of these encounters (2W, 2D).
Oddset and Co. see this as a clear advantage for the hosts. A win for the Danube city side is priced at just under 2.00.
Nevertheless, I would advise you to exercise a certain amount of caution. Maximilian Ritscher’s team has been waiting for a goal of its own for three games (2 draws, 1 loss).
The offensive department in Linz is primarily led by Maximilian Entrup, who stands out as the top scorer with 12 goals.
However, the entire team is focused on defense. Match plans are designed to allow opposing teams few scoring opportunities.
This works extremely well in most cases. LASK has conceded only two goals in its previous five league games.
Compared to the other teams in the Austrian Bundesliga, the home side’s expected defense is among the two best (35.8 xGA).
Apart from RB Salzburg (35.5 xGA), no other Austrian first division team has performed better in this category. The Danube city team are excellent defenders, especially in their own stadium.
Ritscher’s team has conceded only three goals in ten qualifying round games – the best record! In addition, the Black and Whites have not conceded a goal in five home games!
From the two previous encounters with Hartberg, it is already clear that the Styrians also lack the means to break down this excellent defense.
TSG struggled in the attacking third in their last two encounters with LASK and failed to score a single goal.
TSV has been struggling to break down the hosts’ defense for some time now. Hartberg has not scored more than one goal in any of the previous five encounters.
The home side were so well organized in their last competitive game that they didn’t allow their opponents from Altach a single shot on goal.
LASK haven’t been beaten in their own stadium in eight games – a run that speaks for the hosts’ status as favorites.
Furthermore, I expect a low-scoring encounter. Seven of LASK’s last ten matches have seen a maximum of two goals scored.
In addition, I would point to the visitors’ improved defense recently. The Blue and Whites have not conceded a goal in four of their last seven matches!
The two opponents have already faced each other twice since the beginning of April. In both encounters, the defensive lines dominated (0-0, 1-0).
I expect a similar course of play and correspondingly few goals in this decisive match. I consider the Ritsch team’s back line to be extremely resilient.
My LASK Hartberg prediction is: Hartberg under 0.5 goals!
