Will Tabakovic be decisive against Ried once again?
Top scorer Tabakovic and Co. are aiming for their fifth win of the season. In the last 13 league duels, Ried has never won.
Red Bull Salzburg aims to assert its claim to leadership in the Football Bundesliga with another victory.
With an away victory in Ried on Friday evening (at 7:30 PM in the LIVE ticker>>>), the "Bulls" will be at the top for at least two days.
Haris Tabakovic, who has scored in his last four appearances, is once again expected to be the key factor for success.
The Bosnian already has a total of nine competitive goals and aims to further extend his record.
Schwab warns of strong Salzburg side
"Salzburg has improved tremendously in recent weeks. This is also shown by their results with high, clear victories. We must be very, very stable defensively and must not allow Salzburg to create many scoring opportunities," said Stefan Schwab. The Salzburg native (35) once played as a teenager in the Red Bull youth academy. His Ried team has recorded their only win of the season so far at home against GAK.
Most recently, coach Mario Despotovic's team suffered a 2-3 defeat in Hartberg. Salzburg, meanwhile, also rolled over Rapid with a clear 5-1 victory, including two Tabakovic goals.
Danny Röhl can be pleased with his interim results. In Ried, the German expected his team "to perform clearly, alertly, and consistently from the start, to implement our game plan, and to gain control of the match."
In-form Salzburg: Ried's bogey team
Salzburg has played eleven matches under Röhl this season. Nine wins and two draws are on record, with the team, reshaped in the summer, scoring 32 goals.
The record against Ried speaks for a continuation of this run: In the last 13 league duels, there have been ten Salzburg victories and three draws. Ried has never had such a negative streak against any opponent in Bundesliga history.
If Salzburg registers their fifth win of the season, Tabakovic and Co. will jump past LASK into first place in the table. The Linz team will not be in action until Sunday, at the end of the sixth round, against Sturm Graz.
In terms of personnel, Röhl is not forced to make changes. For Ried, the availability of Jaedin Rhodes and Evan Eghosa Aisowieren is questionable, and new signing Isaac Kiese Thelin will probably not yet be in the squad.
