LASK welcome Altach to the Raiffeisen Arena in the relegation round of the Austrian Bundesliga. The hosts are formidable at home and should be too strong for their visitors.
LASK approach this fixture following a narrow 1-0 defeat at Grazer AK, their first loss in seven outings, having won six times in that run. At home, Die Laskler have been formidable, going unbeaten in their last seven league matches at the Raiffeisen Arena, claiming five victories in that stretch.
This resurgence has been helped by a watertight defence as LASK has kept five clean sheets in the last seven Bundesliga home matches. That defensive solidity has not diminished from their attacking quality, with a 6-0 victory over Austria Klagenfurt among the recent home results for Markus Schopp’s men.
Altach are coming off a 0-0 home draw against Austria Klagenfurt in their previous Bundesliga fixture. That result means Fabio Ingolistch’s men are winless in six of their last seven matches in the league.
Things have been worse on the road for Altach, who have lost their last three Bundesliga away matches. A blunt attack is at the heart of that poor run having failed to score in all three matches.
How the bookies view it: Little to separate them
There is little to separate both teams among the bookies, with a win for LASK valued at 8/5 by BoyleSports, who are also offering 13/10 for an Altach victory. A draw is set at odds of 23/10.
Head to head: LASK on top
LASK have a 25-10 advantage with nine draws from 44 previous matches against Altach. The hosts have won six of the last eight meetings, including two victories this season. They claimed a 2-0 away victory in the most recent clash back in March.
Players to watch: Fox in the box Entrup
Maximilian Entrup is LASK’s top scorer with 12 Bundesliga goals and will be the one to watch on Friday. The forward will have support from Robert Zulj and both men can ensure the hosts produce over 1.5 goals at over 7/5 with BoyleSports.
Modou Cisse has been a mainstay at the heart of the LASK defence that has had shutouts in the last four home matches. He is expected to start on Friday and can lead the hosts to another clean sheet at 5/2 with BoyleSports.
Probable line-ups
LASK will be without Andres Andrade and Florian Flecker due to suspension while Lenny Pintor continues to recover from a muscle injury. However, Entrup, Zulj and Cisse are expected to keep their spots in the lineup.
Lukas Gugganig and Mike-Steven Bahre are unavailable for Altach due to suspension while Florien Dietz remains out with a leg injury. However, Ousmane Diawara, Suliman Mustapha and Djawal Kaiba are expected to start.
LASK: Schutzenauer, Ziereis, Smoicic, Boateng, Jovicic, Ljubic, Coulibaly, Bello, Zulj, Entrup, Danek
Altach: Stojanovic, Lukacevic, Zech, Estrada, Ingolitsch, Fadinger, Kaiba, Demaku, Gorgon, Diawara, Mustapha
Anything else catch the eye?
LASK have scored first in five of the last seven matches between both teams and could be backed to grab the opening goal at 21/20 on BoyleSports. Three of their last four home league games have produced more goals in the second half and a repeat is expected at evens on BoyleSports.
The hosts have won to nil in three of their last four home matches and having also earned a similar result in the last meeting with Altach, a similar outcome is expected at 15/4 with BoyleSports.
GambleAware