Salzburg ignite Champions League campaign with win over Feyenoord
Having failed to gain a point or score a goal in their opening three matches of the league phase, the away side successfully subdued the raucous De Kuip stadium in the first half.
Until stoppage time, the action had been limited to a single shot on target, as Janis Blaswich comfortably stopped a low diagonal drive from Igor Paixão.
Having contained the Dutch side, Salzburg were gifted the lead by Feyenoord goalkeeper Timon Wellenreuther with just 60 seconds left of the first half.
The German stopper spied a chance of a quick counterattack but only managed to roll the ball straight to the opposition, allowing Oscar Gloukh to cross to an unmarked Karim Konaté, who headed home from six yards out.
If the home side thought things could only get better after a lacklustre first half, they soon got worse. This time, it was Konaté who fired home from close range again, as De club aan de Maas failed to clear a corner, allowing the Ivory Coast forward to smash home a simple finish.
It looked a long way back for Brian Priske’s side, made harder by the fact that only one of Salzburg’s last 11 matches had seen both teams score.
Effort was high for both sides, as the hosts poured forward but found themselves continually frustrated, with the Austrians showing no signs of tiring despite their frantic pressing tempo.
Two goals down, the Eredivisie side would soon find themselves a man down as Chris-Kévin Nadje was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Lucas Gourna-Douath.
That sending-off proved to be the catalyst of an action-packed closing 10 minutes, in which
Anis Hadj Moussa fired in from an impossible angle to give the home side a lifeline.
Two minutes later, the away side looked as though they had squandered a chance to seal the points as Konaté battered a penalty against the crossbar, only for Daouda Guindo to seal the victory a minute later as he rocketed in an unstoppable shot beyond Wellenreuther.
Three points aren’t enough to propel Salzburg into the play-off spots, while defeat for Feyenoord leaves them 21st with a two-point cushion.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Karim Konaté (Red Bull Salzburg)
