Marked for Marko Jankovic
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces1 Mar 2027
Supporters organise against the Grodig board
A bad atmosphere can be waited out. A group of people meeting afterwards to decide what to do about it cannot, and everybody in the building knows which stage this is.
Match1 Mar 2027
Every point is an argument now for Grodig
Position 10 and 2 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Market1 Mar 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad1 Mar 2027
17 days out for Marko Jankovic after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Grodig will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
Squad1 Mar 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Grodig this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mario Pokar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Market1 Mar 2027
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Grodig, another week without a signature from Anteo Fetahu.
Squad1 Mar 2027
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Grodig would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Feb 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 24 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market22 Feb 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Grodig can pretend not to have heard.
Squad22 Feb 2027
A falling-out at Grodig
Philipp Hoffmann and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
The manager makes an example of Lukas Hiermann
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gabriel Lukačević is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Grodig. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad15 Feb 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 31 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Words exchanged at Grodig
Philipp Hoffmann and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad15 Feb 2027
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mario Pokar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Transfer targets15 Feb 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
The dugout15 Feb 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad15 Feb 2027
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Grodig would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad8 Feb 2027
A fracture rules Marko Jankovic out for 40 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Grodig will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad8 Feb 2027
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mario Pokar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Transfer targets8 Feb 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Mattersburg have kept their man, and Grodig go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
The dugout8 Feb 2027
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Squad8 Feb 2027
A year in and the city has not opened up, the language has not come, and lunch is eaten alone more often than anybody at Grodig would admit. It shows on Saturdays.
Squad8 Feb 2027
“I have done everything asked of me in training and it has not changed a thing on a Saturday.” The most familiar complaint in football, and one Grodig will have to answer with minutes or with a transfer.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
The terraces1 Feb 2027
Anger at Grodig spills outside the ground
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Match1 Feb 2027
Grodig are in real trouble now
Position 10, 2 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.
Squad1 Feb 2027
A fracture rules Marko Jankovic out for 47 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Grodig will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market1 Feb 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Grodig, and it is not being withdrawn.
Boardroom1 Feb 2027
Deadline passes with 0 signed and 0 gone
That is the business done at Grodig until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
The paperwork begins on Filip Rózga
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Grodig have done the hard part with Sturm Graz, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
news_b_frozen_out_of_the_side
Transfer targets1 Feb 2027
Grodig asked and Rapid Wien said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad1 Feb 2027
A row about effort at Grodig
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Simon Ernemann was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad25 Jan 2027
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 55 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Market25 Jan 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Grodig, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad25 Jan 2027
Mario Pokar falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Transfer targets25 Jan 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Squad25 Jan 2027
A muscle injury and 14 days out for Serafin Bütow
The most common injury in the game and the most rushed back from. Grodig will quote 14 days and will be careful with it, because the second one is always worse than the first.
Transfer targets25 Jan 2027
Rapid Wien have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad18 Jan 2027
A fracture rules Marko Jankovic out for 62 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Grodig will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market18 Jan 2027
Sasa Popovič hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Grodig can pretend not to have heard.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Rapid Wien have kept their man, and Grodig go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Squad18 Jan 2027
Words exchanged at Grodig
Philipp Hoffmann and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad18 Jan 2027
A row about effort at Grodig
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mario Pokar was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
A loan enquiry to Rapid Wien: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
Grodig have made the call to SV Ried. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
SV Ried have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad11 Jan 2027
A fracture rules Marko Jankovic out for 71 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Grodig will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market11 Jan 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Grodig, and it is not being withdrawn.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
The paperwork begins on Jonas Mayer
A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. Grodig have done the hard part with SV Ried, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
Grodig asked and Rapid Wien said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Tempers go at Grodig
Philipp Hoffmann was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
A loan enquiry to Altach: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Transfer targets11 Jan 2027
A loan move for Oliver Sorg is in the works
Grodig have made the call to SV Ried. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Squad11 Jan 2027
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gabriel Lukačević is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout11 Jan 2027
Lukas Hiermann asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match4 Jan 2027
Every point is an argument now for Grodig
Position 10 and 2 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.
Squad4 Jan 2027
79 days out for Marko Jankovic after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Grodig will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Market4 Jan 2027
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Grodig, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad4 Jan 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Grodig this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad4 Jan 2027
A row about effort at Grodig
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Mario Pokar was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.
Market4 Jan 2027
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Grodig, another week without a signature from Anteo Fetahu.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
A loan enquiry to SV Ried: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.
Transfer targets4 Jan 2027
SV Ried have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad28 Dec 2026
86 days out for Marko Jankovic after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Grodig will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Market28 Dec 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad28 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Grodig
Philipp Hoffmann and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad28 Dec 2026
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Mario Pokar is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout28 Dec 2026
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad28 Dec 2026
“I have done everything asked of me in training and it has not changed a thing on a Saturday.” The most familiar complaint in football, and one Grodig will have to answer with minutes or with a transfer.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad21 Dec 2026
93 days out for Marko Jankovic after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Grodig will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad21 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Grodig
Simon Ernemann and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Words at Grodig training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Gabriel Lukačević is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
The shape wanted a different profile against this opponent, which is a real football answer and no comfort at all to the man it is about. He did nothing wrong and he did not play.
The dugout21 Dec 2026
Sasa Popovič knocks on the manager's door
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Grodig, and both men came out saying it was fine.