At the very end, there was a small setback in the form of a goal conceded at home: FC Salzburg allowed an unnecessary free kick in the penalty area in the Champions League qualifying first leg against Twente Enschede, and Michel Vlap surprised keeper Janis Blaswich with a shot into the goal post – 2:1 (90th).
Before that, the “Red Bulls” had largely dominated the Dutch, especially in the second half. At the beginning, around 17,400 spectators in Wals-Siezenheim were treated to an open, sometimes wild exchange of blows. Under the new coach Pep Lijnders, the home defense line was extremely high, which almost benefited Twente in the third minute: After a long pass, Mitchell van Bergen moved to the left and crossed to the middle. There, Ricky van Wolfswinkel was completely free to shoot, but Salzburg keeper Blaswich reacted brilliantly.
Without the injured goal scorer Karim Konate, Petar Ratkov took the first shot, Twente keeper Lars Unnerstall, who previously played for Fortuna Düsseldorf, made a strong save (5th minute). Things calmed down a bit after that, the Salzachstadt team gained more control of the game and remained dangerous. Maurits Kjaergaard played Oscar Gloukh free, Unnerstall saved with luck and skill (32nd minute). Shortly before the break, the German goalkeeper was beaten: Gloukh brought a corner into the middle, Twente could only clear briefly, Kjaergaard lurked on the edge of the penalty area and smashed the ball into the near corner with a direct shot and drop kick – 1:0 (40th minute).
Salzburg stays on track
Salzburg stayed in the game after the break, now even more so. Finally, the pressing resulted in a high ball win, and Kjaergaard finished off the quick counterattack with a deflected shot into the far corner – 2:0 (85th). The third-placed team in the 2023/24 Eredivisie was virtually absent – with one exception: when “joker” Vlap equalized, cheered on by 1,500 away fans who created a great atmosphere throughout the match.
The return match will take place on Tuesday, August 13th, at 7 p.m. in Enschede. Before that, the Mozartkickers will make their Bundesliga home debut on Saturday, August 10th, at 7.30 p.m. against FC Blau-Weiß Linz.
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