Football Season Guide

Rapid are coming from a mediocre 2017/18 season which saw them only occasionally show their full potential, with what they showed eventually being enough for a third-placed finish. There were rumours that Goran Djuricin would lose his job after it became impossible for Rapid to finish second, but the board recognized the fact that Djuricin got Rapid back among the sides qualifying for Europe and confirmed that their boss will remain in charge for the new season. The summer transfer window saw Rapid lose their most talented player in Louis Schaub, although his departure will not make them considerably weaker compared to last season, given that he had his impact limited by recurring injuries. Galvao and Joelinton are among other regulars that left, while club stalwart Steffen Hofmann has put an end to his illustrious career. The other players to have left all played only bit-part roles, but the list of players who joined looks very impressive. Rapid have signed two players who were among the best Bundesliga performers last season in Deni Alar and Christoph Knasmullner, while Manuel Martic, Marvin Potzmann, Andrei Ivan and Andrija Pavlovic all look like strong candidates for starting places. The fact that they signed three strikers pretty much shows were Rapid's main problem last season was, as the Green-Whites played good football and created plenty of chances more often than not, but lacked a reliable striker to convert them. It remains to be seen if the new arrivals will help Rapid make the step up and finish inside the top two.