Vienna First-Half Dominance Seals Win Against Belgrade

By: Wolfgang Fötze

Belgrade entered the game in bad form, having managed just one win in their last six matches. Meanwhile, Vienna arrived with a 31 league game unbeaten streak, having gone undefeated in the previous season.

The game kicked off with high expectations for Vienna, and they wasted no time asserting dominance. In just the 4th minute, Max Jaxon found himself in a promising position inside Belgrade's box, but a save from Royal Savage, kept their hopes alive.

But Vienna didn't have to wait long to break the deadlock. In the 6th minute, Bradley Keetch delivered a corner kick to Mungo Scruyazelv, whose header rattled the crossbar but fell perfectly to Max Jaxon who tapped the ball into the net to give the champions an early lead.

The champions doubled their advantage in the 10th minute when Siefad Rahman delivered a dangerous cross to Max Jaxon, who headed the ball against the bar from close range. However, the ball struck the confused Royal Savage and deflected into the net for an unfortunate own goal, making it 2-0 for Vienna.

Belgrade had a golden opportunity to pull one back in the 15th minute with Semmi, as they found themselves in a one-on-one situation with Vienna's goalkeeper. However, Do-Yun Kang produced a good save to maintain his team's two-goal lead.

Vienna Kontinental continued to display their attacking power and added a third goal in the 41st minute. Siefad Rahman played a pass to Moritz Hoffmann, who executed a first-time shot, lofting the ball over the goalkeeper to make it 3-0 just before halftime.

As the teams headed into the break, Belgrade recognized the need for a change and abandoned their attacking three at the back formation, opting for a more conservative four at the back setup.