The thing I took away most from this one is "FINALLY!" A convincing win against a decent opponent. Though they were down last year, Furth is a fairly solid club.
It looks like Dynamo Dresden opened a #10 can of whoop-ass on VfB, 5-0. WTF? Anyone who saw the match care to give their impressions/disgust/rant?
From reading Kicker and Stuttgarter Nachrichten it sounds like VfB had a plan going in, was implementing it, then Dresden scored a goal, and VfB lost the plot in a hurry. Definitely not good. Anyway here are grades that were given by the Stuttgarter Nachrichten editorial staff: Mitch Langerak: At first the goalkeeper got only a few shots on his goal and made only one acquaintance with Stefan Kutschke's angular body. Then it went striking: the Australian could do nothing against the five contenders. (Grade 4). Emiliano Insúa: In the game of the left-back sneezes as always before the 0: 4. Looking forward always. (5) Timo Baumgartl: Played without falling apart. But that was possibly one of the problems: When it was turbulent in the Stuttgart penalty area, was not to be seen by the domestic defense. (4). Benjamin Pavard: The Frenchman played nice passes from the defense. Perhaps even as beautiful as for years no longer in the VfB internal defense. But he does not act as a stabilizer. (5). Florian Klein: The right-side defender did not offer either fish or meat. In the defense he did not play consistently enough and in the game forward he often hung. Had to get out in the break. (5). Matthias Zimmermann: He was a big mistake before the 2-0 defeat - that was the trick in the game and the midfielder was replaced in the half-time. (5). Hajime Hosogai: A very weak performance. Did not get the ranks and rooms in Dresden closed. There was also a lack of precision in the performance. (5). Christian Gentner: As always. However without great influence on the game. This is not the case for a captain if the team collapses within a few minutes. (4). Alexandru Maxim: The technician was looking for a lot of ball contacts, but crucial ideas or passports were not enough for the midfielder. He also held up the pace. (5). Kevin Großkreutz: In comparison to the Fürth game on the right side, moved forward one position forward - and after the break back again. For a man with his demands, the world champion offered too little. (4). Carlos Mané: Played first as the only striker. The Portuguese, however, found no bond to the game. He even gave the big opportunity to lead (33 '). On the right, he was more dribbling, and the ball jumped too many times. (5). Takuma Asano: Should provide new impetus and goal danger. The Japanese, who had been substituted for the second half, had no effect at the front. (5). Berkay Özcan: A young man for more structure in the game and good passes forward. Both were not to be seen this afternoon. (4). Boris Tashchy: In the 73rd minute substituted, not rated. All 4s and 5s. That's spectacularly awful.
That was a terrible result against Dresden, who had not even been playing well beforehand. However, they got a bounce-back win against TSV München on Friday, and one special point of note in that match was an 82nd minute substitution of Terodde by Daniel Ginczek! After more than a year, he's finally back on the field. It must've been a tough recovery. We'll have to see if he's still got it, but I'm sure it's a victory just to be healthy again. We're still 4th place, and just a point out of 2nd. So, chalk up that 5-0 to a bad day on the road. Next up: Mönchengladbach in the cup on Tuesday, on the road. They haven't been impressing in the Bundesliga, but they're sure to be a handful for us. It wouldn't be the worst thing for us to exit the Pokal. We don't seem to have great depth, and promotion is the only thing that matters. Let's see if it goes according to script.
Yeah, I'm with you. I think it's for the best. Wanting to go back up, immediately? Check Not very deep squad? Check Ginczek just now returning to bolster the squad? Check Just win, now, baby!
Thankfully, there aren't too many matches in the 2BL season, because we are trying to go the whole way with Insua, Baumgartl, Sunjic, and Klein. (Grosskreutz has strarted twice, as has Pavard.) No injuries, please. I'd hate to see Sama back out there.
Grosskreutz situation is a bit frustrating, as he looked pretty great last season. Agreed on the Pokal. No shame in losing to a Champions League side, and they didn't get humiliated like they did by Dynamo. There should be only one goal to focus on. Everything else is secondary.
Here's a bit of pre-derby hijinks, from the lads: Die Bahn in Karlsruhe wurde etwas "verschönert". #VfB #KSCVfB pic.twitter.com/ZQvqMhaAXT— RoterBrustring (@Roter_Brustring) October 29, 2016
A good day on the road. It makes me wish I could go to a derby. AND Braunschweig, Berlin, and Heidenheim all lost. So, four teams on our heels, but second place!
Here are the player grades, as per the Sports Writers at the Stuttgarter Nachrichten*: Mitch Langerak: A thankless game for a goalkeeper. The Australian did not have much to do, but showed weakness in the control of the penalty area. (Grade: 4) Kevin Großkreutz: The world champion repressed Florian Klein from the beginning himself and confined himself only once to keep the right defense close. When this turned out quite well, he often pushed himself forward. (3) Toni Sunjic: With the usual difficulties when he had to run into a running duel. However, the defending team showed a solid performance. Fought with a header at KSC goalkeeper Dirk Orlishausen. Changed to break. (4) Timo Baumgartl: The home defender played attentively but not without mistakes. When he did, however, he was on his way with long strides. After the break very energetic and uncompromising in his approach. (3) Emiliano Insúa: A good performance of the Argentines - even if he is always open for counter-attacks by his offensive force. Prepared the second and third goal, but he also unhappily caused the hand-held meter. (2) Marcin Kaminski: The Pole was in the starting line for the first time - and in an unusual position. In the central defensive midfield, he sometimes looked a little stiff, but the summer commitment always made good the roads. After the break, he moved into the home defense and continued to play well. (3) Matthias Zimmermann: The midfielder ran a lot against his former club. He also went boldly into the two fights. Only with his passports after ball conquests it did not always go according to desire. (3) Christian Gentner: Very energetic, very present. The VfB primary rock had to be noted that he wanted to advance in the Derby. This was achieved with good campaigns in the offensive - there was also a lamb hit. (2) Carlos Mané: An active player on the right wing. Because he is not only fast, but also with Christian Gentner also played well several times. In addition, the Portuguese assisted the goal by Takuma Asano. (2) Takuma Asano: The Japanese scored his first goal of the season for VfB and showed some good approaches. However, the attacker still lacks the bond to the game and probably also the power for more dribbling. Had after halftime more actions and the chance for his second goal - held by the KSC keeper Dirk Orlishausen. (3) Berkay Özcan: The talent came in the middle and did not cope particularly well. However, he spared no duel and was withdrawn after halftime midfield. There the 18-year-old felt more comfortable, but he was not more effective. (4) Simon Terodde: The VfB committed him to this: the midfielder was interchanged after the break, climbed the same high and nodded to the 2-0. Then he fell to being no longer great. (3) Alexandru Maxim ...... and Florian Klein (right) came on in the closing stages and fulfilled their duties. Maxim scored his goal for the decision. (Both 3) I am surprised by some of the grades, especially the 4s. If these grades are even close to accurate, then KSC must have been graded in the 5s and 6s. *My translation with the help of Google.
"Insúa... caused the hand-held meter" I'm guessing hand-elfmeter. They only showed they penalty kick on the highlights, so I didn't know what happened. Glad it wasn't a foul by a beaten defender. Hand balls happen. Although it must've made the visiting fans sweat for a while, until Maxim made it safe late.
Yeah, that was my editing error. Sorry! I didn't see it, but by press (and fan) accounts, it was pretty soft.
Only a draw in Berlin. Ex-Berliner Terodde scored after only 3 minutes, with a nice feed from Gentner. Sadly, we passed up the chance to go top, because of a keeper error. Langerak, under no pressure, couldn't handle a long ball into the box. He punched it awkwardly and was unfortunate to have it land in the path of a player with too many consonants in his name, who volleyed past him. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I am thankful we are still in 2nd place. The first half is coming to a close, with the Dec 12th home match against Hannover being the big date left on the schedule. Be sure to catch that one with me, because it's a late start, which is easy for everyone's timezone. After Dec 18th, we get a month off to contemplate what 2017 holds.
Not bad, but he's a bit of a project. With a couple of goals, and assists, in ~10 games, he's OK. He has been positive, and not a liability.
Braunschweig lost today, which means we are two points clear at the top! 4 points ahead of Hannover, so they can't catch us on Monday, but this match will still be huge. VfB is known for their Jekyll and Hyde rückrundes, so a 6 or 7 point cushion on the playoff places could make all the difference. I don't see a collapse, because the competition is just not there, but we're still a long way from the finish line. Tune in Monday!
What an abysmal finish to the first half. First they gift the match to Hannover on an awful backpass, which the keeper then misplays. And on the following matchday, they fail to show up and got demolished by Würzburg 3-0, enough to lower their league leading goal differential behind both of their opponents, falling to 3rd place, and driving me to drink. Well, that's the past. Time for them to get back on the horse. God, I hope they don't finish third, because I don't see the metal to win that relegation match.