SVWW narrow defeat to Champions in season finale
Pros |
SV Wehen Wiesbaden got the reprieve they had been hoping for on Matchday 25 of the Bundesliga 2 season. The 15,000 spectators saw SVWW coach Rüdiger Rehm's charges fall behind in the third minute, only to strike back with five goals in the remainder of a crazy first period. The scorers in the 6-2 away victory were Manuel Schäffler (5, 26, 45), Maximilian Dittgen (7), Stefan Aigner (15) and Daniel-Kofi Kyereh (90+2).
Rehm kept faith with exactly the same starting XI that had made a good impression away to league leaders Arminia Bielefeld in the last round of fixtures. Following a lengthy spell out injured, Jules Schwadorf was included in the squad for the first time this term.
Both teams made a lively start, with barely three minutes played before the first goal was scored. Former SVWW man Niklas Schmidt played a free-kick towards Marcos Alvarez, who struck the crossbar from close range. The ball bounced back into the danger zone and Benjamin Girth headed home from close range.
The Red & Blacks appeared unfazed by the early setback and had put themselves back on level terms within 120 seconds of falling behind. Manuel Schäffler took advantage of defensive sloppiness by the hosts and hammered the ball inside the near post from five metres out in the fifth minute of the match. Two minutes later, the goalscorer turned provider. Having received a delightful through-pass down the wing from Sebastian Mrowca, Schäffler fired a low ball across the face of goal for Maximilian Dittgen to slot into an empty net.
Emboldened by the quick turnaround, SVWW went in search of the next goal on the soapy surface. The Osnabrück rearguard initially managed to thwart attempts by Schäffler and Tobias Schwede, but the Lily Whites were powerless to prevent the next goal in the 15th minute as Aigner headed home a Dittgen cross. As if stung by an adder, the SVWW attack had sprung into life and were too much for an off-colour Osnabrück side. Overwhelmed with shock at how the visitors had turned the game around, the Lower Saxony outfit needed some time to gather themselves.
Rehm's charges, it has to be said, seemed to have significantly fewer problems on the slippery surface, which also hindered the hosts for the next SVWW goal in the 26th minute. Substitute Kevin Wolze slipped as he attempted to control the ball 30 metres from his own goal and, with his opponent lying on the ground, Aigner stole possession of the ball. The right-back squared it into the path of Schäffler, who was left with a comfortable tap-in into an empty net to make the score 4-1.
Following that frenetic opening half-hour, the Red & Blacks continued to throw everything into the challenges – albeit without applying the same level of offensive momentum. The hosts, meanwhile, held their own and did not budge an inch without a fight. With emotions running high, the atmosphere ramped up at the Bremer Brücke as the crowd urged the home side forward.
Girth had two opportunities during this period to get himself on the scoresheet again. Both times though – in the 31st and 37th minutes – he shot wide of SVWW keeper Heinz Lindner's goal. At the other end, Schäffler was in imperious form and when VfL goalie Philipp Kühn palmed Daniel-Kofi Kyereh's shot from 20 metres into the danger zone in the 45th minute, the forward pounced to complete his hat-trick.
That was not to be the last goal before the break, however. Osnabrück pulled one back through Moritz Heyer, who converted a cross from Wolze, in the second minute of stoppage time and even came close to reducing the deficit to two goals before the half-time whistle sounded, Alvarez poking the ball a few centimetres wide of Lindner's goal in the third minute of added time. A memorable first 45 minutes then came to an end – with seven goals scored and the score at 5-2.
Bolstered by their late offensive in the first period, home coach Daniel Thioune's charges began the second period brightly. Spurred on by their own supporters, VfL attempted to pull another goal back quickly. Yet it was Wehen Wiesbaden who had the first moment of danger in the 53rd minute when Schäffler took advantage of a mistake in the Osnabrück defence and went clean through on Kühn. He was denied a shooting opportunity at the very last second, however.
The best opportunity of the second period fell to the home side in the 62nd minute of the match. Wolze, who cut a lively figure on the left flank, picked out Alvarez in the centre but his shot went narrowly wide – that was close to being 5-3.
By this point, the soapy surface was impacting both teams. The game died down and remained relatively uneventful until the 79th minute, when Wolze boldly had a go with a curling effort from the corner of the penalty box. The shot, which struck the bar, served as a wake-up call for the visitors, who looked solid in defence thereafter.
Instead, the game was brought to a conclusion at the other end by the Red & Blacks. Schwede hit the crossbar with a lob following a one-on-one with Kühn, with Kyereh subsequently tapping home the loose ball easily to make the score 6-2 in the second minute of stoppage time.
SVWW: Lindner – Mrowca (Kuhn, 46), Mockenhaupt, Dams, Röcker, Schwede – Aigner (Titsch Rivero, 84), Chato, Kyereh, Dittgen – Schäffler (Tietz, 78)