first competitive match of the season: Sandhausen (away) a 15.000pop Megalopolis with a dune (hence the name)... but unfortunately no beach far and wide finished 15th in last season's 2.Bundesliga Andrew Wooten (one of the germanborn Americans) is their monster-scorer looks like a must-win for Rose and the team but as always 1st Cup round will cause some stunner results: the match of the year-extra-performance on the one and the underestimate-factor on the other side and most of all: the opponents of the Bundesliga-clubs start much more early into season and usually are more in the 'groove' by this point
Wooten's contract expires 6/30, multiple reports indicating he's Chicago-MLS bound. There are no guaranteed W's for Borussia this season. Not with a new coach trying (perhaps) to implement a new style with mostly the same players. It would be nice to see Benes and the kids get a real shot to see if there's a fit in the near term............but I'm unaware of his policy on youth as opposed to old war horses so.........................
ah, yes 6/30... perhaps I was rather hasty in opening a new 19/20-thread because 18/19 isn't officially completed sorry for that respected forum participants! I was misled, over here there is no term like 'off-season', meaning: all matches played, but inter alia leaving players still under contract (if this is the correct meaning at all ;-)... for us supporters the season ends with the last matchday you're right, I checked: German media definitely see Wooten leaving to the U.S. (it's his longtime dream)... but no clubs are mentioned at all now it's definitely a must win for Borussia! and Sandhausen is going to be relegated... and even worse: they are gonna loose their unique selling point (village-club) because Großaspach of 3rd tier is even 'smaller' than them... how could Wooten do that? about the new coach: you are totally wrong! ;-))))) Rose didn't go for your defeatist ;-) "no guaranteed W's"-talk at all when he was presented in Gladbach he said: it's gonna take some time, but I know we nevertheless need results, AND WE WILL GET THEM... so everything is fine, don't doubt, get into joyful expectation like me (it's like becoming a father!) CL-ranks 19/20 and 20/21 we are going for the Meisterschaft... even club legend Netzer, who is not known for over-enthusiastic predictions said that Borussia can become Meister again if they club manages to bring more consistency in it's performances [to be honest, I don't know what has entered him... finishing 4th in the next years would be great, but I don't take that for granted... with or without Rose... next season there won't be as many opponents in shooting-in-their-own-foot-mode like 18/19, I'm pretty sure)
Sandhausen's monster scorer is joining Philadelphia (what a surprise! ;-))) Sanhausen's coach told that "on a normal" day Borussia is gonna win but he also emphasized that his team has an advantage because it's Borussia's first competitive match of the season
Story went from coming to us to coming to Chi-town and then back to us all within 5 days. They (and some German SM) were all saying he was Illinois bound. Hijacking in MLS? The very thought.............
this evening it counts! Sandhausen got one point out of two 2.Bundesliga matches bit they say they certainly looked better than that... Borussia is pulling all of Sandhausen's inhabitants into the stadium and there will be 4000 Gladbacher, too... everybody is hot as frying fat... 1-4, I assume (Plea at least scoring two!)
I guess the "Kampf und Krampf"-headline is to the point quite a struggle, sometimes mean, garnished with a lot of 'Krampf' (~ cramp), in this context meaning: the inability to reach a higher level of soccer we didn't press that much, instead Sandhausen on their part pestered us quite often in our own half... all in all I couldn't recognize a big difference in 'quality' Sandhausen got their chances, but, astonishingly, the lack of imagination in offense surpassed our defensive weakness so, no 1-4 but at least 0-1 and overall the team didn't buckle that's DFB-Pokal, first round! H'heim got into penalties against a 3rd tier club, Mainz out against a 3rd tier club, Augsburg out against a 4th tier club... and there is more to come I guess Cuisance wasn't in the squad because of little ailments
wow, anybody as enthusiastic as I am? it's against Hazard, Dahoud, Reus, Schulz and Favre! away! another season without silverware I guess...
at least eleven players out against BVB tomorrow (by now the replacements like Jantschke have to be replaced; Embolo out for most likely four matches) Stindl not fit for 90min players like Zak urgently need a break Benes (played his first 'english Week' ever) & Thuram are still lacking stamina some are driving on their rims I guess 123km running distance (season high for Gladbach) against F'furt... after a Rome-trip few hours ago! tomorrow means: testing the limits! but some supporters and especially some media are thinking that Westfalenstadium is overdue to fall tomorrow... puhhhhh! I'm not that optimistic ok, after D'dorf, Turkey, BVB, Rome, F'furt etc it seems that the 'caving in'-times are finally over and D'mund is somewhat ailing; they got very lucky against us and against S04 and lost in Italy (even quality-paper FAZ called their style against Inter 'Bübchenfußball'... little-boy soccer) media has already lined up to bring Favre down and some already rushed ahead: there is talk of a 'Schicksalsspiel', the match which decides upon his future (all of this typical premature media-hyperbole, of course) hyperbole, like similarily what media is placing on our shoulders: articles about Gladbach becoming Meister... because of a) & b) & c) ... hahaha and the tale that Gladbach (and F'furt f.e.) is thrilling while BVB and Bayern are boring the match on wednesday is big, it's on television... we started something and soccer-Germany is playing along... and now of all time we appear with a 'Rumpfttruppe'... a depleted squad... I hate it! if the team will pass this test I'm flashed... and media will add more points why Gladbach is finally winning the league... from ZEIT: "In a crazy league, where the tenth is only five points away, Borussia Mönchengladbach, truly no team without defects, remains front-runner. Even if coach Marco Rose does not want to talk about the table: After a quarter of the season that is not nothing." and "Lucien Favre may have to ask himself how he has formed such a discouraged bunch from a surely not perfect, but offensively talented squad. And why, despite the slowdown, he brought in national striker Julian Brandt not before the 86th minute. In general, the Bundesliga is not good, but at least it is entertaining. Dortmund is currently playing bad and moreover: boring. BVB is tormenting all football supporters."
SO4 staggered into next round against a 2.Bundesliga team (at least a good one) the Honesses staggered into next round against another 2.Bundesliga team (a bad one at the moment... Salihamidzic: "I'm happy to get in the bus.") but they made it... and the goats are out against Wynalda's ex-club (4th tier) we are out too, but at least we didn't make a fool out of ourselves... actually this was good promotion for Borussia the Borussias were tired... it showed! a lot of inaccuracy on both sides... normally, we would have won, actually BVB was pretty bad but what do you expect? 11 out yesterday morning Kramer before the match, makes 12 Bensebaini in 26th, makes 13 and Hofmann & Stindl had to start; both normally would have gotten nothing more than a 30min-mission at the end Makridis of U23 had to come in... let the insipid you'll-never-walk-alone-copycats go with the cup, we go with the championship ;-)