Wien times are good

By Luke McLaughlin

Renewed vigour
SK Rapid Wien reached the final of the UEFA Cup Winners Cup in 1995 where they lost 1-0 to Paris Saint-Germain FC, and this season's UEFA Cup has given Rapid's capital rivals, FK Austria Wien, a chance to shine and take their turn in the spotlight. Danish coach Lars Söndergaard has assembled an impressive squad with a blend of youth and experience, and is in favour of the restructured competition this year as his side prepare for the visit of Spain's Real Zaragoza.

Financial boost
"As we are a smaller club it's very good - I think it's good to play more than the two games in the knockout stage," said Söndergaard. "It's super for the fans that they can get to see the better-known clubs and I think it's good for football. Financially it is good for the smaller clubs as well," he added.

No regrets
The former RC Lens and Juventus FC midfield player, Jocelyn Blanchard, turned down a move to BV Borussia Dortmund in the summer to join Austria instead, and has become a key player. He has no regrets: "As I've always said the decision I took at the time was the one I wanted to take. It's easy to say I could have gone here or could have gone there but at the critical moment I made my choice to come to Vienna," he said.

Domestic title
Austria's Norwegian striker Sigurd Rushfeldt scored the goal that beat FC Utrecht on Matchday 5 and became a hero, and has clear priorities for the rest of the season: "I would say that winning the league here in Austria is the most important thing, and then qualifying for next year's [UEFA] Champions League."

Lifetime ambition
But Söndergaard is still undecided which he would prefer to win if given a choice between the Austrian title and the UEFA Cup. "It is a very difficult question - we have to win the championship, we are favourites, we want to win it, and we can do both if we go all the way in the UEFA Cup. But if I had to choose one of them, it would certainly be to win the UEFA Cup once in a lifetime."