Maric made in heaven

By Marcus Christenson

FC Kärnten will be overwhelming underdogs when they contest Sunday's Austrian Cup final against FK Austria Wien, by some distance the winners of the Bundesliga, but in Marijo Maric they possess a striker well versed in defying the odds.

European football
The 26-year-old Croatian international has established himself as one of the most feared strikers in Austria to help Kärnten, a tiny club from Klagenfurt in the southern part of the country, do likewise in the ten-team élite. Dismissed as relegation candidates following their promotion in 2001, Johannes Haubitz's side have not only belied the doubters, but qualified for European football three seasons running.

Sixteen goals
They were knocked out of the UEFA Cup by Hapoel Tel-Aviv in the first round last October but have enjoyed moderate success in the league, finishing eighth following today's 2-1 home defeat by Grazer AK. Although Maric failed to find the net, he can be well satisfied with his 16 goals this season. The tally left him joint-second in the goalscorers' chart with Eduard Glieder of SV Pasching, five behind Schwarz-Weiss Bregenz striker Axel Lawaree.

Tough task
Maric's eye for goal has won him many plaudits both in Austria and his homeland, where he has often fallen under the shadow cast by his 30-year-old brother, Tomislav, who scored 12 goals for VfL Wolfsburg in the German Bundesliga this season. A goal against Austria in the cup final would further raise his profile, though he acknowledges that it will be tough against Christoph Daum's side.

Confidence gained
"We know that it will be extremely difficult but we beat them [Austria] 3-0 away when we last played them," Maric told uefa.com. "They had already won the title and did not have anything to play for but it still says something and it means that we can go into the final with some confidence." Austria also lost their final match today, 2-0 at home to Bregenz, but still finished 13 points clear of runners-up GAK.
 
'Fighting spirit'
They have been similarly efficient in the cup, eliminating BSV Bad Bleiberg, SK Sturm Graz and SV Austria Salzburg on their way to Sunday's showpiece at the Arnold Schwarzenegger stadium in Graz. Maric said of Austria: "They have really good players in every position. They are technically very good and have a lot of experience. We have to show passion, fighting spirit and be a bit greedy and not allow them to play their game."

International goal
Maric joined Kärnten in October 2001 from VfL Bochum 1848, having previously played for a number of German clubs including VfB Stuttgart. He made his international debut last summer and now has five caps, scoring once in a 2-2 friendly draw against F.Y.R. Macedonia. Maric has also featured in UEFA EURO 2004™ qualifying and is in Otto Baric's latest squad for the 11 June trip to Estonia.

EURO dreams
Maric dreams of representing his country at next year's final tournament in Portugal, and said of his chances of doing so: "Me, my wife and our two little kids are very happy here in Klagenfurt - we are by the lake and the landscape is very pretty. But it is also clear that I want to play with Croatia at EURO 2004 and that could be quite difficult to achieve when I am playing in Austria."

Looking forward
Maybe not. Should Maric impress in the Austrian Cup final and in the Group 8 fixture in Tallinn, then he, his club and his country will all be one step closer to making their mark on the bigger stage.