A terminus that once seemed a tenuous prospect now arrives. It lies within reach. Barring something highly improbable, the German Bundesrepublik will reach another milestone this weekend. Barely six weeks after becoming the first European country to successfully restart its football season after the unprecedented global lockdown, both the first and second Bundesliga tiers shall be the first leagues to successfully complete their interrupted campaigns.
I myself can recall the specific emotions coursing through my veins as I sat down to compose a piece on the restart itself. An unpleasant angst accompanied any attempts to argue for a resumption of live sports. The unease and anxiety of the previous months generated somber premonitions. At the time, events suggested that envisioned negative outcomes were in the ascendancy. Anything one could potentially imagine going wrong would. Predicting brighter days felt like dangerous business indeed.
Amidst all of this, It certainly took some courage for the country’s FA to lay out a bold plan to complete all three of its professional tiers, its domestic cup, and even the women’s league and cup within such a short timeframe. The plan was incredibly daring. The execution took its own amount of persistent fortitude. It remains my personal hope that humanity will never forget the manner in which it was humbled by the COVID Crisis. We must vigilantly preserve this humility in the wake of the new surges.
Let us not forget that the virus is far from finished with us. Let us also never forget that the courage to make audacious plans when confronted with intimidating uncertainty must be preserved. We may not always observe the same success as we did here, but the collective will to give it a shot cannot be compromised. Risks and uncertainty associated with this pandemic will remain with us in the coming months and possibly years. As the conclusion of this large-scale sports experiment proves, one can manage and mitigate risks without fully bowing to them.
How about a discussion of unpredictability and uncertainty on the football pitch? That’s why humanity needs its sports, after all. The thrill of the moment. The agony and ecstasy of a campaign’s climactic finish. In European leagues operating on promotion/relegation tiers, a team’s ultimate fate is closely intertwined with the fortunes of the local community. Emotions are amplified far beyond what one experiences following a team in a static association.
In previous pieces covering the lower German leagues, I’ve sought to emphasize just how significant this community connection is. It’s not just a team. It’s your town. Which citizens headed for soaring new heights and which ones headed for dismal dejection? One can always rely on this part of the season to entertain and fascinate… no matter how many times Bayern München wins the title.
German Bundesliga
Before getting to the crucial relegation matches, I’d like to reiterate that the final fight for the last UEFA Champions League place is certainly worth keeping tabs on. Between Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs. FSV Mainz and Borussia Mönchengladbach vs. Hertha Berlin, I’d tend toward the latter match as its more likely to unfold unpredictably. At least try to reserve screen space for that fixture if possible.
Regarding the red-hot relegation scuffle, neither SV Werder Bremen nor Fortuna Düsseldorf can hope to achieve outright safety on Saturday. One club shall live to fight another day by claiming 16th place; a two-legged playoff against the third-placed team in the second league taking place on July 2 and 6 follows. The north German Werderaner need some assistance to accomplish even that. Düsseldorf must lose for a Hanseaten win to lift them out of the automatic relegation zone. A F95 draw helps only if Werder can manage to win by over four goals.
Both relegation-threatened teams square off against clubs that were promoted last season and have only just secured a second successive season of top-flight Bundesliga football.
SV Werder Bremen vs. 1. FC Köln
Bremen trainer Florian Kohfeldt somehow held on in a campaign that featured nine managerial changes. This came as quite a surprise to me, who selected him as the most likely to be sacked at the beginning of the season. The corona break surely had a great deal to do with this. The club likely would have had enough difficulty attracting candidates before the lockdown threw everything, including the club’s finances, into disarray.
As it turned out, the only investment the Bremen board could afford was those snazzy Teamgeist (team spirit) facemasks. I admit they were pretty cool, but it looks as if they couldn’t prop the team up enough in their relegation battle. Wins against Freiburg, Schalke, and SC Paderborn since the restart weren’t good enough. Some thought the corona break would aid Kohfeldt’s injury-ravaged side immensely. In the end, the reintroductions of Fin Bartels, Niclas Füllkrug, and Phillip Bargfreude came to little, too late.
The SV now stand at the precipice of their first drop down to the second division in 39 years. I personally haven’t been alive for a Bundesliga that didn’t include the Hanseaten. After watching decades-long mainstays like Hamburger SV and VfB Stuttgart fall in recent seasons, it appears we’re about to lose another giant here. The four-time champions have to pull several rabbits out of a hat to escape this predicament, beginning with a big win against the recently promoted Geißböcke.
Kohfeldt has little choice but to deploy a full-throated 4-3-3 much like the one he used in the second half of last round’s match. He may have no choice but to use the same personnel as well. Twenty-three-year-old Kosovar sensation Milot Rashica, the team’s leading scorer with seven goals, remains doubtful with injury. This places enormous pressure on young American striker Josh Sargent. There’s nowhere else for Kohfeldt to turn. The Missouri marvel has a knack for scoring early. Can he hope to do so?
Seeing as how Köln’s Markus Gisdol will want to use this opportunity to test out something exploratory; possibly even start the recently promoted youth reservist Robert Voloder, an early Bremen lead isn’t out of the question. If Kevin Vogt or Christian Groß can perform as well as they have in recent fixtures with respect to establishing control of the match, Sargent and the likes of Yuya Osako and potentially Davie Selke will get their early looks.
Kohfeldt can still build something promising out of what he has. An early jump ahead and quick defensive reformation gives them a chance. It ain’t over, at least not until one sees 41-year-old retiring legend Claudio Pizzaro come on for a curtain call. Then it’s most assuredly over.
1. FC Union Berlin vs. Fortuna Düsseldorf
Quick quiz question. Who is currently the 2019/20 Bundesliga’s fifth-leading scorer? Any casual fan can name the top three: Robert Lewandowski, Timo Werner, and Jadon Sancho. No problem. It might take some chin-scratching to deduce that VfL Wolfsburg striker Wout Weghorst occupies fourth place. One isn’t arriving at the next name on that list without thinking back a bit. That can actually be somewhat difficult since the global lockdown sometimes leaves one feeling like there were three halves to this season.
It’s the Flingeraner’s Rouwen Hennings; a one-time star of second-tier clubs FC St. Pauli and Karlsruher SC. The 32-year-old German international is used to finding himself on the other side of the promotion/relegation fight. He helped St. Pauli achieve promotion in 2010, assisted Karlsruhe in winning the third division in 2012, and was even a big feature on the Burnley side that won the English Championship in 2015/16. Yes, he was also a vital part of the 2017/18 Düsseldorf team that won the second German division to bring this club back into the top flight.
Hennings’ 15 goals this season mostly came at the beginning of the campaign with other form flashes coming in fits and spurts. After taking a closer look at the 1-1 draw with Augsburg last week, I believe he might be the one in-form player left on this team. Manager Uwe Rösler’s tactics in recent weeks have become increasingly twisted. The F95 has looked recklessly different in the last five fixtures, all of which have seen them fail to fail to win. One wonders if the mid-season leadership change was necessary.
One has a sense that this team could have been far removed from the relegation race if it were more consistently coached. Opponents Union Berlin will not serve as pushovers either. Though Urs Fischer has often played it ultra-conservatively in many matches since the break, he will put forth his best XI here. It might be the case that I’m, as many writers do, evening the odds with specious arguments. Askew preview pictures are always begging to be painted.
One of Germany’s fabled punk rock clubs should be able to secure the playoff place. The Flingeraner’s two-point advantage over Bremen means that they can likely even afford another draw. A playoff scenario involving the F95 would be my more confident prediction. Expect a cantankerous tactical rant if it doesn’t come to pass.
German Bundesliga Two
One will barely have a chance to let Saturday’s results settle before it’s time to conclude another league with simultaneous kickoffs on Sunday. Though I know a football lover’s docket presently overflows now that all major European leagues have restarted, I wholeheartedly encourage football fans of all persuasions to give this echelon a look. There remains much to be decided on the final day.
The non-existent town of Bielefeld has clinched the second-league title. Congratulations to the German football’s most erratic club, DSC Arminia Bielefeld, on their fourth second division championship and record 16th league shift in the last 25 years. We’re all looking very much forward to welcoming die Arminnen back to the Bundesliga for the first time in 11 years, then giving them a lovely send-off right back down to the lower division next May.
Second-place VfB Stuttgart has also all but clinched automatic promotion. It technically still possible that third-place FC Heidenheim could catch up to them on goal differential, but extremely unlikely. This constitutes great news for American fans of Germany’s top division. Up-and-coming American manager Pellegrino Matarazzo will be coaching every week in the Bundesliga.
I do believe I warned everyone about how huge this would be. Be prepared for thousands of pieces documenting this historic first. The German-language media can’t get enough either. We sense some sagely brilliance in that perfectly symmetrical salt-and-pepper beard. The man could sneeze his way into an elaborate tactical write-up.
As noted above, Heidenheim currently occupies the playoff spot. Nipping at their heels we have the old mainstay, Hamburger SV. Nicknamed “Der Dino” (the Dinosaur) because -prior to 2017/18, anyway- they were the only remaining Bundesliga club never to have been relegated; a massive Bundesliga city still stands a chance at clawing its way back up this year.
Armenia Bielefeld vs. 1. FC Heidenheim
Thanks to a 2-1 defeat of Der Dino in the previous round, the FCH of Eastern Baden control their own destiny. Just win against a champion sure to rest its older guns and it’s the playoffs. More so than any of the other sides, Heidenheim has put together the most convincing victories since play resumed. We Germans can stand to welcome a club built in the old-fashioned, patient, and Mittelstand-approved manner into our Bundesliga.
Checking in with the entire league in the comprehensive midseason column, I recall being specifically impressed with the manner in which Heidenheim had competed against this division’s larger sides. They also had arguably the league’s best transfer class with the likes of Tim Kleindienst, Stefan Schimmer, Konstantin Kerschbaumer, and Tobias Mohr.
This club had the feel of a well-run organization that had just made some well-timed moves. Of course, if they don’t make it this time after going all-in, those moves will look much less opportune.
Hamburger SV vs. SV Sandhauen
How are the HSV even still in this? That’s actually a rather common question German football fans habitually ask themselves around this time of year. Dieter Hecking’s men have been especially poor since the restart, winning two, drawing four, and losing two fixtures as they blew chance after chance to claim automatic promotion.
Mid-season transfers Louis Jordan Beyer and Louis Schaub have been busts. Joel Pohjanpalo has been an absolute gold strike, but none of the other strikers have had a particularly good second half. I do like this team’s explosive midfield. Hecking knows how to redesign his squad when initial plans fall through. Just a shade too many draws this season.
It’s still not over. A win against a Sandhausen side missing talismanic defender Gerrit Nauber appears likely. All it takes is one slip top on behalf of the team one point above them and the HSV can still punch through.
Karlsruher SC vs. SpVgg Greuther Fürth
Down at the bottom of the league two table, matters are all but sewed up save the fate of the team destined for a playoff place against a league three club. Goal differential all but assures Dynamo Dresden and SV Wehen Wiesbaden of a place in next year’s third division. The recently promoted Karlsruher SC and the recently relegated FC Nürnberg contest 16th place.
SpVgg Greuther Fürth already conferred upon the KSC the best possible indirect favor they could hope for by defeating Nürnberg in Round 31’s regional Bavarian Derby. Karlsruhe’s victory over their own regional rivals Stuttgart on that very same day left both teams deadlocked at 33 points. It’s been an insane rollercoaster ride ever since.
The FCN first defeated Wiesbaden 6-0 in the 32nd round, then proceeded to lose 0-6 to Stuttgart in the 33rd. After dropping valuable points in a 1-2 loss to Jahn Regensburg, the KSC then overcame an early 0-3 deficit to draw Armenia Bielefeld in a dramatic comeback to keep their outright survival hopes on life support.
Top-scorer Phillip Hofmann supplied the hat trick to earn Karlsruhe the draw. The club will now be betting on Hofmann to light it up against his former team if the Badeners wish to avoid the playoffs. Fürth and the KSC are fairly evenly matched. The same can be said of Nürnberg and their opponents Kiel.
What happens now? A very close finish. A Karlsruhe win and Nürnberg draw might even put these clubs dead even in terms of goal differential. If that occurs, the Bavarians barely edge out their counterparts thanks to a 1-0 win in February. A writer with some slight regional connections might find himself slightly pissy at such an outcome.
German Bundesliga Three
We’ve still three rounds to go in the Bundesrepublik’s third professional football tier, but it’s still shaping up to be some finish. It’s possible that Bayern’s reserve squad might actually win the league. If nothing else, most of the German neutrals don’t want to see FC Bayern II capture first place. It seems as if a finish in the top three can’t be prevented, meaning the fourth-place team will claim the playoff spot.
Just as we did in the previous section, we’ll start with what we already know for sure. SG Sonnenhof Großaspach and Carl Zeiss Jena have already been relegated. For those currently seeking a fun cult club to support, Jena has always been a great recommendation. A shame to see them go. Hope to see them back in the fully professional tiers soon.
We also know three of the four teams that will be promoted to this league next season. Germany ultimately decided to suspend play in all five of its regional leagues in light of the corona pandemic. Teams at the top of three of the five leagues operating in the fourth tier earned automatic promotion. Joining us next year will be VfB Lübeck from the North, 1. FC Saarbrücken from the Southwest, and Türkgücü München from Bavaria.
In the Western Regionalliga, champions SV Rödinghausen did not apply for a league three license. Thus, second-placed SC Verl, who some may recall from their sensational DFB-Pokal run earlier in the year, qualified for a two-legged promotion playoff against Northeast Champions Lokomotiv Leipzig. The two sides drew 2-2 in the opening leg earlier Thursday. We’ll know the final new club moving up to this level after the second leg on Tuesday.
Some great storylines are already set to take place in this division next season. Lübeck’s return to the professional ranks after 16 years is pretty special. The Saarbrücken fans will be eager to show the support for their side they were sadly unable to during this year’s Pokal semifinals. I’m convinced that amazing story Türkgücü München shall continue. We’ll figure out the stadium issue. File this under the things we know for sure.
One final decided issue before getting to this weekend’s action: My beloved hometown club of Kaiserslautern sits in mid-table safety. They’re essentially out of harm’s way. Four wins since the restart were surely enough. At last, I can enjoy some third-league action without reaching for the antacids. Finalize the damn financial rescue package so I can put the antacids back into the cabinet until next season.
Its not quite time for simultaneous kickoffs in the third division just yet. MSV Duisburg vs. Hallescher FC and FC Ingolstadt 04 vs. SV Meppen, two major matches that will clarify matters among the promotion contenders, will take place on Saturday and Sunday respectively.
While those are the results worth tracking, my personal pick for the best fixture of the weekend should be worth tuning into early on Saturday. Kickoff at 1400 in Central Europe.
Würzburger Kickers vs. Hansa Rostock
It’s hard for German neutrals to pick a side in this one. Würzburg is an acceptable Mittelstand club who has also thrown its financial backing behind our women’s league. Rostock was once the eastern light of the German Bundesliga, spending 10 uninterrupted seasons in the top-flight in the longest stretch for a former DDR club post-reunification.
In any event, both clubs have been in blazing form since the restart. The kickers have scored 17 goals in a six-game unbeaten run whilst the Ostseestädter tallied 14 times on their own six-match streak. Rostock’s revival has been one of the major surprises of the campaign’s second half. Aided somewhat by Waldhof Mannheim’s collapse, they’ve pushed all the way to sixth place at 56 points.
Should they fail to win here, however, they just might fall out of the race. Würzburg, already on 60 points, can begin to pull away with even a draw here. Projected wins for Eintracht Braunschweig and FC Ingolstadt 04 might also cut them adrift. Ah hell. Up with the Pomeranian Pirate ship! Let’s keep this race tight until the very end.