Zawieschitzky takes blame for conceded goal: "It was just stupid of me"

First off: Christian Zawieschitzky wasn't to blame.

FC Salzburg lost 2-0 at RSC Anderlecht on matchday four of the UEFA Europa League (Match report>>>) – largely due to an abysmal first-half performance.

The key moment of the game came during those first 45 minutes. After 20 minutes, veteran Swedish defender Ludwig Augustinsson curled a free-kick from around 20 meters over the Salzburg wall, which disintegrated as it jumped.

"Bulls" keeper Zawieschitzky stood rooted to the spot and could only watch as the ball hit the back of the net underneath the crossbar right next to him.

"I gambled"

"I thought one of them (Danylo Sikan, ed.) would shoot right-footed into the keeper's corner, so I gambled," explained the 19-year-old.

The young Tyrolean was harsh on himself: "It was definitely savable. It was just stupid of me."

Röhl more annoyed by how it came about

Head coach Danny Röhl saw a very well-taken free-kick rather than a goalkeeping error. The German was far more annoyed by how the situation developed in the first place.

"Long ball behind the back line, then we go into a duel where we need to stand our opponent up," said Röhl, referring to Frans Krätzig's passive defending prior to his costly foul.

A solid performance from Zawieschitzky nonetheless

Zawieschitzky kept Salzburg in the game afterwards with several good saves. However, he stood no chance against Marten Winkler's goal from a counter-attack.

"In the end, I conceded goals, there's no sugarcoating it," Zawieschitzky said, remaining self-critical.

ÖFB national team? "Just happy to be part of it"

The "Bulls" breakout star made his ÖFB debut during the last international break, earning special praise from head coach Ralf Rangnick for his performance in the home match against Kosovo.

The left-footer has once again been called up for the upcoming internationals against Ireland (at home) and Israel (on neutral ground in Hungary). What are his expectations for this international window?

"I'm just happy to be part of it. If I get to play, that's great; if not, I'm just grateful to be able to train with the team. Because things could have turned out very differently and I could have stayed at home," Zawieschitzky said.