Tuesday, December 14, 2021
Wolfsburg remains in free fall
Helpless Hertha can only marvel at Mainz
Hertha BSC shows itself again from an ugly side after a short interim high after the change of coach and goes under in Mainz. The 16th matchday of the Bundesliga is just as bitter for VfL Wolfsburg: Its series of defeats has long been dramatic and is won by 1. FC Köln.
1. FSV Mainz 05 – Hertha BSC 4: 0 (2: 0)
The small upswing of Hertha BSC under the new coach Tayfun Korkut has suddenly been stopped. After an extremely weak performance, the Berliners conceded a 0: 4 (0: 2) bankruptcy at FSV Mainz 05 and are still close to the relegation zone with only 18 points. For the successor to Pal Dardai it was the first defeat in the third game and a serious relapse after the last growing hope in the capital. The Mainz team, on the other hand, are still involved in the fight for the European Cup places and have already exceeded the previous season’s yield (16) with 18 home points.
The lively Jae-Sung Lee (19th), Alexander Hack (41st), Silvan Widmer (49th) and Jean-Paul Boetius (80th) made the 05er victory with their hits in front of 10,000 spectators and ensured that Hertha remained without a win for the seventh time in a row in Mainz. “You can tell that he has changed a few things. They are looking for more playful solutions. They act according to a clear plan,” said 05 trainer Bo Svensson on TV broadcaster Sky about the new Berlin direction under Korkut. Much of it wasn’t to be seen in Mainz, however, because the hosts put aggressive pressing against it, which the Berliners didn’t like at all. Hertha hardly came out of their own half and lost many balls quickly. That couldn’t go well for long. The Mainz tour by Lee was the logical consequence. After a cross from Moussa Niakhaté, Widmer headed the ball to Lee, who only had to nod off.
And it went on in only one direction. Only four minutes after the Mainz lead it went haywire again in the Berlin penalty area, finally Widmer put the ball over the goal. The Rheinhessen continued to press on the second gate. If Leandro Barreiro and Karim Onisiwo hadn’t hindered each other after a cross, Hertha keeper Alexander Schwolow would have had to get the ball out of the gate a second time (30th). At the club from the capital city with the big ambitions, the vote on the defensive was not at all right, the much acclaimed 2-0 win against the penultimate Arminia Bielefeld at the weekend was obviously not a yardstick.
In addition, the ailing striker Stevan Jovetic, who had scored three times in the first two games under Korkut, had to leave the field after half an hour. Davie Selke came on for the Montenegrin and shortly afterwards, somewhat surprisingly, had the only Berlin chance in the first round (36th). But just five minutes later the shot backfired again. Again, the Hertha defense was unsorted, Hack came to a free end in the half-left position. His shot was deflected unsustainably for Schwolow.
Korkut had seen enough, brought Kevin-Prince Boateng at the break for the combative note and Marco Richter – without success. Mainz kept turning up, everything went too fast for Hertha. After Aaron’s cross, Widmer headed the ball over the line. “Second division, Hertha is there,” echoed from the stands. On top of the bitter evening, the Berlin team also suffered an injury to Suat Serdar, who had to leave the field after 56 minutes. And it got worse: Boetius hit with a heavy shot from the edge of the penalty area. And if the hosts had better exploited their chances, there could have been a real debacle.
VfL Wolfsburg – 1.FC Cologne 2: 3 (1: 1)
VfL Wolfsburg is still deep in the crisis. Despite a significant increase in performance and two lead times, Lower Saxony also lost against 1. FC Köln 2: 3 (1: 1). After the sixth competitive defeat in a row, the badly battered team of coach Florian Kohfeldt will now have to play in the last first round match at Bayern Munich on Friday evening. Having started the season as a Champions League participant, VfL then only threatens to go into the winter break with a slight lead over the relegation place.
Lukas Nmecha met in front of 5000 spectators in the 8th minute for VfL. A mistake by national player Ridle Baku enabled the Cologne team to equalize in the first half through Anthony Modeste (34th). The FC even had two answers to Wout Weghorst’s 2: 1 after excellent preparatory work by Dodi Lukebakio (51st): Mark Uth (73rd) and Modeste (89th) turned the game. The two Nmecha brothers Lukas and Felix started together for the first time at VfL – which immediately paid off. Felix Nmecha first tested the Cologne goalkeeper Marvin Schwänke with a dangerous finish (2nd), then his brother, who had already been appointed to the senior national team, was successful after a counterattack. The 23-year-old scored his sixth goal of the season on his birthday after a presentation by Baku, which the Nmechas celebrated together. Kohfeldt screamed his joy on the sidelines – now the game was going as he imagined.
The FC, which had only been able to win one of the previous eight Bundesliga games, initially did not really find an answer to the compact defense of the Wolfsburg. Koen Casteels held Modeste’s header firmly in the VfL goal (19th). The Wolfsburg, on the other hand, suddenly played with speed and courage again, very differently than in the past few weeks.
However, the uncertainties cannot be eliminated overnight. Due to a mistake by Baku, the ball came to Florian Kainz in the VfL penalty area, who only hit the crossbar – but Modeste was on the spot with his head to follow up. The game became more open after the equalization, both coaches paced excitedly up and down in their coaching zones. Shortly before the break, Casteels saved strongly against Timo Hübers (45th + 2). On the other hand, after the half-time break, Schwänke was there against Lukas Nmecha (48th), before Lukebakio prevailed on the left a little later and served Weghorst. The Dutchman scored his sixth goal of the season. Cologne’s striker Modeste, on the other hand, missed the almost direct answer with a failed shot (55th).
Ten minutes later, VfL had to do without Lukas Nmecha, who was treated badly and could no longer play. Baumgart also changed – three times (72nd). And the substitute Kingsley Schindler and Uth ensured the next Cologne jubilation only about a minute later in a co-production. Modeste made the luck of the FC just before the end with a head.
Arminia Bielefeld – VfL Bochum 2: 0 (0: 0)
In the last home game of the first half of the season, Arminia Bielefeld celebrated the redeeming first victory in her own stadium and sent a sign of life in the relegation battle. The team of coach Frank Kramer deservedly won the West duel against the last strong VfL Bochum 2-0 (0-0). The Japanese Masaya Okugawa (51st) with his fourth goal of the season and the Austrian Patrick Wimmer (69th) scored the goals. With the last home win in April, Ostwestfalen sealed the relegation of FC Schalke 04.
With 13 points, the previous year’s climber will probably still hibernate in a direct relegation place, but he kept in contact with the saving ranks. Also to the Bochumers, who are now seven points away. The promoted team had previously only lost two of their last eight games.
Kramer had put captain and striker Fabian Klos on the bench for the first time in two months and only for the third time this season. But he started with a double lead: Janni Serra and Florian Krüger, both former U21 national players, both came from the second division in the summer – and both still without a goal of the season. Which stayed that way. In front of 13,750 spectators, the Arminia started powerfully, but the momentum was quickly gone.
And because VfL tried first and foremost for compactness, the first shot on goal of the entire game was not made until the 21st minute. And that resulted from a bad pass from VfL captain Anthony Losilla; Wimmer served Alessandro Schöpf, but he failed because of Bochum’s goalkeeper Manuel Riemann. The Arminia was now inspired, the guests unsettled. But a shot by Wimmer after another fatal blunder by Erhan Masovic was blocked by Danilo Soares (23). It took VfL up to the 37th minute to come dangerously in front of goal for the first time, but Gerrit Holtmann failed after a nice counterattack by Stefan Ortega.
Bochum also had the first chance after the change through their best offensive player Christopher Antwi-Adjei (48th). But then Arminia took the lead when Okugawa won the header against Christian Gamboa after a cross from Wimmer. After an hour, Kramer took the unfortunate Serra and Krüger down and brought Bryan Lasme as well as Klos.
VfL coach Thomas Reis also made an offensive move early on, but then his otherwise reliable goalkeeper failed: Riemann let a harmless shot by Wimmer slip over his fingers and enabled the best player on the field to score his second goal of the season.