The ball will be rolling again in the Austrian Bundesliga this weekend. Four games will take place on Saturday, before all eyes will be turned towards the capital on Sunday, where Rapid Wien will face Austria. The violets have already said goodbye to the championship fight and even the other international places are already a few meters away. But also Rapid has a big gap to front runner Sturm Graz, which may even be catched up.

Rapid Vienna:

With nine wins, seven draws and four defeats Rapid Vienna said goodbye to the winter break. Although this record is currently enough for third place, the gap to championship leader Sturm Graz is ten and RB Salzburg nine points. The Champions League is thus currently in the distance. The main problem with Rapid Vienna were the appearances in the home stadium. Because of ten home games Rapid Vienna could only win four. There were three more draws and three bankruptcies. In sum, this only makes rank six out of ten in the home table. By contrast, Rapid Wien is second best team with a record of five wins, four draws and a defeat.

From his last three home games brought Rapid Vienna only one counter. After two home defeats in a row gave in the last home game before the winter break at least once again a point. Rapid has already played three times against Austria Wien this season. In the Bundesliga, the two parted in the stadium of Rapid Vienna with a 2: 2, but at the Austria in Happelstadion Rapid Vienna could win both in the Bundesliga and later in the Cup. At home, however, Rapid Wien has been waiting for three games and the opening of the stadium on a win against Austria.

Austria Vienna:

Vizemeister Austria Wien plays a pretty bad season. After twenty out of 36 matchdays, Austria is only sixth. So far, there have been just seven threes, five draws and eight defeats. The gap to Admira on the Europa League qualifying field four is already five points. The Champions League is out of the question considering the two leaders of eighteen and seventeen points, respectively. In the Europa League, Austria Wien was eliminated just as early as the last of a group capable of doing so with AC Milan, AEK Athens and Rijeka as early as in the national ÖFB Cup. As was against Rapid Vienna in the second round final.

This season can only be saved with fourth place and therefore Austria Vienna needs points. In the last game before the winter break, Austria Vienna beat Bayern striker Sturm Graz 1-0, after winning four Bundesliga games in a row. For Austria Vienna it was a conciliatory last game in the 2017 calendar year, after the violets had previously brought only one point from three games and have lost, among others, at St. Pölten, for which it is still the only victory after twenty matchdays.

PREDICTION: Rapid Vienna to win @ 1.55