Football Season Guide

LASK have had a rollercoaster of a season that ended on a sour note, as a campaign that saw them lead the league for so long ended in a late collapse and a fourth-place finish. Things reportedly broke down between Valerien Ismael and his players late in the campaign and their manager was let go at the end of the season, with the club making the bold decision to bring in Dominik Thalhammer, whose sole previous Bundesliga gig was with Admira 15 years ago and who spent the last ten years managing the Austrian woman's national team. When it comes to the squad changes, two important players have left in Klauss, whose loan stay from Hoffenheim is over, and Dominik Frieser, who was snapped by former Wolfsberger manager Gerhard Struber and his current side Barnsley. The list of arrivals is rather lengthy and interesting - the Linzers have already had several success stories with giving midtable players a chance to shine and will be hoping to strike gold again with Andy Gruber, who signs after having a superb spring season with Mattersburg. While Klauss and Frieser were certainly important players for LASK, the Linzers were actually as close to a side without a real starting eleven as one can get. The main concern regarding them going into the new campaign will therefore not be regarding the quality of their squad, but the experience, or lack thereof, of their manager.