Sturm Graz saw off Floridsdorfer 3:1 in a Club Friendlies fixture on Thursday. The hosts took all three points at home, though the match carried none of the pressure of league action. It was another chance for both sides to gauge their shape before the competitive campaign begins.
And here's the thing about friendlies — you watch for patterns, not results. Sturm Graz controlled territory with their 51 per cent possession, but possession figures alone rarely tell you who played better. They registered 102 attacks against 91 for the visitors, which suggested they stayed on the front foot more consistently.
The statistics don't lie, but they don't explain everything either. Both sides drew a corner roughly every ten minutes, and neither manager felt the need to send off anyone. The free-kick count sat level at 17 apiece, so fouls were distributed fairly evenly across the pitch.
For Sturm Graz this was something of a recovery after that heavy 3:0 defeat to RB Salzburg. They had looked shaky against Rennes and Rapid Vienna, but the 4:1 win over Voitsberg showed they could still score in clusters. To be fair, Floridsdorfer had carried that momentum from their 4:0 victory over Liperin.
The visitors had mixed fortune in their recent run. Two wins against Wacker Innsbruck and Rapid Vienna II sat alongside that embarrassing 4:0 loss to Schwarz-Weiß Bregenz. By then you start wondering whether consistency is even on the agenda, or whether these are just warm-up games.
What matters now is that Sturm Graz found a rhythm. Three goals against a side that had shown they could score themselves — the Voitsberg result proves that — suggests their attacking moves are clicking. Floridsdorfer will need to tighten up if they want to avoid that kind of exposure when it counts.
