At the end of said half against the Swedish champions, a few dissatisfied whistles echoed through Stadion Salzburg – as the Red Bull Arena must be called internationally – which was disappointingly filled with only 7,654 spectators given the game's importance.
"We are doing our best to attract even more spectators. I believe the team currently deserves more. Little by little, it will get better. We are making an upfront investment, and then we will get the stadium full again," hopes Röhl.
Newly Found Defensive Stability
Indeed, Röhl's system seems to be taking hold better week by week. Let's start with the hitherto very solid defense, which can be of great value, especially internationally.
From the goalkeeper to the back four, the new Salzburg defensive unit consists of five (almost) entirely new faces: In goal, promoted Christian Zawieschitzky proves his immense talent game after game.
New signings Dominik Schmid, Nikolas Veratschnig, and Kevin Boma have so far proven to be absolute assets for the team, while promoted Valentin Zabransky can already be identified as one of the season's most positive surprises.
"We don't defend with four, but with eleven"
This quintet recently celebrated three consecutive "clean sheets" (Röhl's original quote). "Although that's not just down to us, but starts with the striker up front. We don't defend with four, but with eleven. Against the ball, we are very disciplined," notes left-back Schmid.
Röhl sees it similarly: "Against the ball, it only works together, as a collective. I see a team that is constantly developing. And if something still gets through, we have an excellent goalkeeper."
Major Focus on Ball Possession
Wir wollen eine Mannschaft werden, die nicht nur Facetten im Umschaltspiel, sondern auch viele Lösungen im Ballbesitz hat.
During summer pre-season, the newly formed Salzburg staff placed a strong focus primarily on playing with the ball. Finding solutions against deep-lying opponents is currently the top priority.
Röhl on this: "We want to become a team that not only has facets in transition play but also many solutions in possession. We want to dominate every game; for that, you need healthy ball possession. We are working on speeding up the game at the right moments."
Against Mjällby, this worked quite well. Against the Swedes, who were already tired by this point, the "Bulls" patiently created chances in the final phase and this time also utilized them. Double-scorer Karim Konate and Haris Tabakovic each proved clinical.
Finally, Striker Goals
The lack of efficiency from the strikers was one of the main problems why things didn't work out at all in past seasons. And even in recent weeks, far too many clear-cut chances were still squandered.
"But I've never been worried. There's a big difference between not scoring goals and not having chances. As long as we keep creating chances, we will score," Schmid is confident.
Decisive Weeks Ahead
It's clear: The team is currently quite far removed from the Red Bull 'power football', the pressing-oriented, high-speed football that made Salzburg distinctive in Europe about a decade ago – but this is quite intentional and due to the fact that not every recovered ball immediately goes forward; instead, the team seeks other, more fluid solutions.
How good Salzburg's start actually was will be much better evaluated in less than a month, during the season's first international break. By then, the "Bulls" will have completed Bundesliga duels with Wiener Austria, Rapid, and SK Sturm, the first Europa League matchday, and the second round of the UNIQA ÖFB Cup.
If the "Bulls" can bring their displayed command, defensive stability, and goal threat onto the pitch in these decisive matches, the stars are well aligned for success to finally return to the City of Mozart this season.
