Wacker's relegation would be a bitter setback, not a catastrophe

In the year after promotion, the specter of relegation haunts Tyrol before the final round. The bottom team is two points short of second-to-last Hartberg, and in addition to a home win against Mattersburg on Saturday (17.00 p.m.), they need help from Admira (at least a draw).

In the last two relegations in 2008 and 2014, 29 points from 36 games were not enough for the Tyroleans. This time the Innsbruck team would have 20 points in their account if they were ultimately successful. Without rounding off due to the new league mode, there would have been 29 points again, but in only 32 games. So a series could continue.

“You have to block out what is brought in from the environment. There is talk of a catastrophe, but I don't see it that way. But of course it would be a bitter setback,” said Wacker President Gerhard Stocker in an APA interview. Giving up would not be an option for him. “In football, relegation is part of it. Then you have to get up again. Of course it would be bitter, but Wacker will still exist,” emphasized Stocker.

Clearly not in its current form. The two-man team, which is in sixth place in the 2nd league after 27 rounds, would have to be relegated to the fourth performance level due to the West League reform that will become more impactful from next season. A lot of the development work of the past few years would be gone in one fell swoop. “The development in the sporting area has been really great. Football Tyrol is slowly seeing that this would be the way forward. The second team is now an interesting club for top talent,” explained the Wacker boss.

However, it is still entirely possible that Tyrol's talents will not lose the “good platform”. The optimism that radiated in the Tyrolean camp before the 2-3 defeat at Admira was not lost before the season finale. “In the end, we are all still in an absolutely positive mood, of course with the downside that it no longer just depends on us,” said Stocker.

He took Zlatko Dedic and Co. to task. “They are all professionals, they have to be able to handle the pressure,” emphasized Stocker. Only one win counts for his team. “We have to do our homework. I see a chance against Mattersburg and am assuming that we can manage a win,” said the Tyrolean. He did not want to take part in speculation about what could happen in Hartberg. “That’s no use,” said Stocker.

In the spring there were ten defeats and only three wins for the Tyroleans in 13 games. This was celebrated under Karl Daxbacher's successor Thomas Grumser, but the coaching castling still had no effect. “I see it very pragmatically, the past is a waste of time when we discuss it,” said the Wacker President. At the time of the decision they were convinced of this. “There is no evidence to the contrary as to how things would have continued under Daxbacher,” added Stocker. But he admitted one thing: “The timing may not have been good.”

Whether Grumser will sit in the coaching bench in the event of relegation is just as open as the future of sports director Alfred Hörtnagl and many players. “The planning is such that we are trying to persuade everyone around us that we cannot go into medias res until next week. All employees and players are asked to be a little more patient with us,” said Stocker.

In the event of relegation next season, competing with the second team as the first team is not an issue. “A mix would come out,” announced Stocker. He is always open to working with Wattens. However, it is not to be expected that this will happen. Wattens still has every chance of promotion in the 2nd league. “If Wattens succeeds in promotion, that will be acceptable from a sporting point of view. “I and a large number of club officials are of the opinion that two Tyrolean clubs in the top division cannot be run economically in the long term and sustainably,” said Stocker, describing his view.

The Tyroleans already have to turn over every euro twice. The fact that the Tivoli Stadium is not owned by the club doesn't make things any easier. There were still positive things to report. “The collaboration with Olympiaworld has improved drastically in the last few months,” said Stocker. Regardless, moving to the second division would entail financial cuts. “You then have to revise the revenue budget and have discussions. But it is clear that a few things would have to be reduced,” said the chairman of the Bundesliga supervisory board. In this case, instead of pushing forward development, “muddling along” would be the order of the day.

	SP	TV	P
1. RB Salzburg	27	57:19	35
2. Sturm Graz	27	46:17	35
3. LASK	28	36:23	27
4. TSV Hartberg	28	43:44	24
5. Rapid Vienna	28	43:29	22
6. Austria Klagenfurt	28	36:42	19
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	SP	TV	P
1. Austria Vienna	28	33:26	26
2. Wolfsberger AC	28	31:37	19
3. SCR Altach	28	23:35	17
4. BW Linz	28	27:42	16
5. WSG Tyrol	28	25:48	16
6. Austria Lustenau	28	16:54	9
View all

	SP	TV	P
1. RB Salzburg	22	45:12	50
2. Sturm Graz	22	37:15	46
3. LASK	22	26:18	35
4. TSV Hartberg	22	33:28	34
5. Austria Klagenfurt	22	29:27	34
6. Rapid Vienna	22	38:21	33
View all

	SP	TV	P
1. Grazer AK	25	46:22	58
2. SV Ried	25	56:20	47
3. DSV Leoben	25	42:26	44
4. Floridsdorfer AC	25	37:25	43
5. FC Admira	25	37:25	41
6. FC Liefering	25	39:33	37
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