Shootout Between Stuttgart and Schalke
April 8, 2005
It's been a long season. But with seven games remaining, fans around the country still have hope that their club can make the desired move -- either to the top of the standings, or out of the relegation zone. Coaches are depending on key players to reach their goals but 27 games have taken their toll.
At Schalke, for example. In the highlight match against third place Stuttgart, coach Ralf Rangnick has grave personel concerns. Central defender Marcelo Bordon, who transferred from Stuttgart at the end of last season, has hip problems. His fellow defender, Mladen Krstajic, is banned from the game after picking up his fifth-yellow card last week. And to boot, the presence of middle striker Ebbe Sand is questionable after receiving a broken nose.
That means it's time for others to pick up the slack -- like Mike Hanke. The 21-year-old came in for Sand last week and promptly struck twice in the 4-1 victory against Nuremberg. Hanke hasn't minced words about where he should be standing every Saturday -- on the field. "For weeks I've been wanting to start," he said cheekily. "Sometime, I think, coach will understand this."
Yet with highly-paid striker Brazilian Ailton and Sand, who is the heart of the Ruhr valley club, Hanke may have to be satisfied with playing second fiddle for this season at least.
Stuttgart are coming off a thrilling victory against reigning champs Werder Bremen to stay within shouting distance of the league title. Only five points behind Munich and Schalke, a win is mandatory for Matthias Sammer's club. A championship, or at least the Champions League qualification, would help finance the recent signing of German midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger from English club Aston Villa.
Easy three for Bayern?
Top club Bayern Munich, coming off their 4-2 Champions League defeat on Wednesday at the hands of Chelsea, welcome a favorite opponent of theirs -- Borussia Mönchengladbach. In 37 matches in Munich, Gladbach have come away with a victory only one time. A horrible statistic for coach Dick Advocaat's club who on 29 points are by no means clear of the relegation zone. Nothing short of a miracle is needed if Gladbach is to win this match.
Behind the top three clubs, there is a big struggle to grab the two automatic UEFA Cup slots. Defending champs Bremen (47 points) travel to Hamburg for a northern derby. Thomas Schaaf's boys find themselves looking more behind them after last week's loss to Stuttgart but have a three point cushion on Berlin and Hamburg. Thomas Doll's HSV must do without the services of their potent offensive players Barbarez, Mpenza (both one match bans) and Lauth (injury). That spells bad news for Hamburg whose defense must stand solidly to stop the league's most powerful attack (56 goals).
Rising from the ashes
A reborn Dortrmund side (38) play in Leverkusen (43 points). Dortmund are the fourth best team in the second leg (20 points) and this stretch has allowed the bosses at BVB to dream, even if just slightly, of reentering the chase for a UEFA spot. But three key players, striker Jan Koller, midfield playmaker Tomas Rosicky and defender Markus Brsenska, are questionable for Saturday.
Leverkusen have struggled of late, winning only once in their last five Bundesliga ties. Goalkeeper Hans-Jörg Butt said in an interview with kicker magazine that "the players aren't all on the same page." Now is the time for them to do that.
Berlin destined for three?
Falko Götz' Hertha Berlin (44 points) have the easiest task amongst the UEFA Cup competitors. They host last place Freiburg. Volker Finke's club has been utterly abysmal but last week tripped up Hamburg by drawing with them at home. Draws are also common when Freiburg travels to Berlin. In five matches, there has been a dearth of scoring (seven total goals) and four times, the game has ended even.
On Sunday, Nuremberg and Hansa Rostock meet as the relegation fight is beginning to reach a fevered pitch. Rostock lie five points back of their opponents and hence, a spot in the first division next season. The northern Germans have strung together three victories in four matches, giving up only four goals during that stretch. Nuremberg is highly dependent on Marek Mintal finding the net. If he is silenced, things could look bleak for coach Wolfgang Wolf's team.
Bochum and Hanover meet with more at stake for Peter Neururer's VfL. They lie in the relegation zone, even with Rostock. Hanover broke a five-game losing streak two weeks back and are all but assured of playing in the Bundesliga next season. Bochum's defense is porous, but Hanover has a relatively harmless offense.
Another potential relegation candidate, Mainz, host Wolfsburg (37 points). These two teams played an electrifying match in the first leg with Wolfsburg coming out on top, 4-3. Promoted side Mainz had found themselves temporarily leading the league on the 11th match day when they jumped to a 2-0 lead. That was their moment of glory but since then Jürgen Klopp's club has gently sunk towards the bottom. On only 30 points, they are not yet out of the woods.
The final game pits Bielefeld against Kaiserslautern. The Red Devil fans finally mobbed Austrian coach Kurt Jara out of his job after last week's 2-0 home loss to Hanover. This week he revealed he would not resign for next season and the management decided to let him go immediately. Amateur coach Hans-Werner Moser will lead Lautern this Sunday.