Finding Hojlund & toppling a giant - how Sturm Graz ended Red Bull dominance

Rasmus Hojlund was a teen struggling to make a existent effect astatine boyhood nine Copenhagen erstwhile nan 18-year-old came to Sturm Graz's attention.

The Austrian outfit were scouting for a striker and recovered Copenhagen consenting to portion pinch a subordinate who, contempt making his debut aged 17, had only returned 5 goals successful 32 games - each of them successful nan Europa Conference League.

"We searched for personification pinch a batch of velocity and extent successful his game," sporting head Andreas Schicker tells BBC Sport. "We scouted Rasmus really early and soon saw that he would fresh perfectly successful our game.

"Another very important portion was that we checked connected his characteristic very early successful that process, we had videocalls pinch him and his family and truthful on.

"His characteristic and his intelligence spot were highly impressive, particularly for a subordinate astatine his age."

Sturm snapped up nan Denmark younker world successful January 2022 for £1.6m, nan astir nan nine had ever spent connected a teen and a transportation met pinch immoderate scepticism.

Hojlund duly delivered, scoring 2 goals connected his debut, 4 successful his first 4 games, and a full of 12 goals successful 21 matches earlier Serie A broadside Atalanta bought nan striker for almost 10 times what Sturm paid 7 months earlier.

"From his first time connected successful Graz he convinced america that we made nan correct determination successful getting him and everybody saw that he was and is destined for higher duties successful football," reflects Schicker.

Hojlund, of course, would walk 1 play successful Italy earlier joining Manchester United successful a £72m woody and is simply a good illustration of nan awesome recruitment exemplary instigated since Schicker joined Sturm Graz successful 2020.

But he is besides conscionable a mini portion of nan communicative down really Sturm ended nan power of Red Bull Salzburg, a nine who won 10 successive Austrian Bundesliga titles earlier Sturm's convention and cup double past play and who person made 24 of nan 25 most-expensive transfers successful nan league's history.

"I deliberation successful nary different European convention nan financial spread betwixt 1 nine and nan others is truthful large arsenic successful Austria," adds Schicker.

"Of course, Salzburg has Red Bull arsenic a sponsor but besides earned this pinch awesome work. But I deliberation we showed successful nan past twelvemonth what is imaginable besides pinch little means."

Sturm's Austrian Bundesliga title successful May was their first successful 13 years and they are backmost successful nan Champions League group shape this play for nan first clip since 2000-01, wherever they big Club Brugge connected Wednesday.

It comes aft nan nine made a conscious determination to travel a "new path" erstwhile they appointed Schicker successful 2020.

"The thought was to person occurrence connected nan transportation pinch a squad that is built astir a fewer much knowledgeable leaders who are surrounded by young, talented players who we want to develop, who tin get fresh for nan adjacent measurement successful their profession astatine Sturm and who we tin waste for profit," explains nan 38-year-old, who himself turned down liking from clubs successful Germany this summer.

"The cardinal is to find nan equilibrium betwixt having success, qualifying for European competitions connected 1 manus and making profit connected our talented players connected nan different hand."

In each of nan past 4 seasons, Sturm person sold connected 1 of their cardinal assets for a patient profit. Hojlund remains nan grounds sale, but earlier him Kelvin Yeboah's 17 goals successful 34 convention games earned nan guardant a £5.4m move to Genoa.

The twelvemonth aft Hojlund's departure, Dutch striker Emanuel Emegha joined Ligue 1 broadside Strasbourg for £10.9m aft 1 stellar play and past summertime midfielder Alexander Prass swapped Austria for German top-flight broadside Hoffenheim for £8m.

That is pittance compared to rivals Salzburg, who person sold 9 players for much than Sturm received for Hojlund, but has provided a sustainable exemplary for nan nine to support reinvesting successful young talent.

This summer, they spent a club-record £4m connected London-born Denmark Under-21 guardant Mika Biereth from Arsenal, who scored 9 goals connected indebtedness successful nan 2nd half of past play to thief Sturm clinch a convention and cup double and has 4 successful 9 this term.

"One of our strengths is that erstwhile we scout a player, we person a really clear and defined floor plan for each azygous position that nan subordinate has to lucifer successful bid to activity retired successful our accuracy and style of football," says Schicker.

"That gives america an advantage successful closing successful connected players who we are willing in, because nan excavation of imaginable targets narrows a lot."

Head coach Christian Ilzer is nan man who has implemented that accuracy connected nan pitch, pushing his squad to play "dominant, aggressive, attacking football" and looking to triumph nan shot backmost quickly.

When he arrived successful 2020, nan extremity was to bring down a "league giant" successful Red Bull Salzburg.

"On nan 1 manus it was teamwork, very bully coordination betwixt sporting head Andreas Schicker and myself," he says astir nan process.

"Of course, location was besides a apical coaching squad down it, a nine that was down it, that supported nan ideas that we forged, that lived and breathed them.

"And of people it was important from nan outset to guarantee a awesome woody of clarity."

Ilzer's ain profession was trim short by repeated cruciate knee ligament injuries aged 17 and his travel from amateur coach to double-winning head has been varied.

Competing successful nan Champions League is of people nan item truthful far, but nan 46-year-old is acold from finished.

"I'm not yet astatine nan extremity of my dreams, astatine nan extremity of my development, which should ever continue, but nan travel is what fulfils me," he adds.

Likewise, Sturm whitethorn beryllium backmost successful Europe's elite title but nan travel does not extremity present aliases alteration nan exemplary that has truthful acold proved successful.

"For america it was ever 100% clear, that nan Champions League will not alteration thing astir nan task we started present successful Graz 4 years ago," adds Schicker.

"Of course, it's a dream travel existent for everybody astatine nan nine to play connected nan biggest shape successful nine football, but nan money that comes pinch it doesn't alteration our attack to nan transportation market.

"We still wanted to get young, talented players pinch a batch of imaginable to turn to nan nine alternatively of getting knowledgeable players for nan Champions League.

"We besides want to put successful infrastructure, for illustration a 2nd training crushed for nan club. For that, nan Champions League net of people thief a lot."