SVWW narrow defeat to Champions in season finale
Pros |
SV Wehen Wiesbaden suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of VfL Bochum on Matchday 21 of the Bundesliga 2 season – despite having numerous good opportunities and producing a good performance. VfL's Simon Zoller scored the only goal of the game in the 39th minute in front of 5,373 spectators at the BRITA-Arena.
Sebastian Mrowca returned to the side after serving a one-game suspension and replaced Moritz Kuhn at right-back, but otherwise it was the same starting XI that drew 2-2 in Hanover.
The visitors made a courageous start to the match and strung together some passages of controlled possession at the outset. Congolese frontman Silvere Ganvoula twice came close to opening the scoring in the second and third minutes respectively, although he could not steer either of his efforts on target.
Ganvoulas' second chance served as a wake-up call for the hosts – and they were soon creating chances themselves. Maximilian Dittgen's shot from 15 metres out was kept out by VfL keeper Manuel Riemann after five minutes; and from the resultant corner centre-back Benedikt Röcker slid over the top of the ball and could not generate the right contact on it.
The Red & Blacks were by now in control of the game and launching dangerous counter-attacks upon regaining possession – though they could not make them count. Dittgen had a good chance to break the deadlock in the eighth minute when he dispossessed VfL defender Luca Gamboa, but his powerful strike from the edge of the box was parried behind for a corner by Riemann.
As their attacking momentum began to build, SVWW created chance after chance – though their best opportunity actually came via a Bochum player after a quarter of an hour. Dittgen attempted a cross after receiving a brilliant pass from Paterson Chato. Left-back Danilo Soares managed to get an outstretched leg in the way, but in doing so put his goalkeeper on the spot. Manuel Schäffler headed the ball narrowly over the Bochum crossbar from the ensuing corner (18).
Daniel-Kofi Kyereh came close to giving the home side a deserved lead only a minute later. However, the nippy forward leant back too much when connecting with Tobias Schwede's cross and missed the target (19).
It developed into a lively encounter, and the visitors from Castroper Straße had their chances too. The biggest threat for the Blue & Whites was Ganvoula, whose third shot of the game was deflected behind for a corner (22). The Bochum man went even closer five minutes later when he struck the ball past SVWW custodian Lindner, but fortunately Röcker was on hand to clear the ball off the line with the goalkeeper beaten (27). It was the biggest chance of the game for the visitors in the opening half-hour.
Bochum began to exert more pressure going forward. The game was slightly over half an hour old when Ganvoula forced Lindner into making the next save (33). The visitors were now very much in the ascendancy and deserved to take the lead in the 39th minute when the Bochum No. 35 was teed up inside the SVWW penalty area. Lindner managed to save his shot, but Simon Zoller was on hand to pounce on the loose ball and tapped home to put the Blue & Whites 1-0 ahead.
The Red & Blacks needed to show a reaction – and that's exactly what they did. Chato hit the bar with a header following a corner in the 41st minute, with Aigner's follow-up striking the side-netting.
With the score at 1-0 at the interval, Rehm introduced Törles Knöll in place of Aigner. SVWW immediately went on the offensive and it was captain Mrowca who first troubled the Blue & Whites after the interval, although his 49th-minute effort was well off the mark.
The Red & Blacks looked more alert than their visitors and created their first gilt-edged opportunity of the second period when Dittgen set up substitute Knöll in the 55th minute. His attempt was blocked at the last second, however.
Bochum, who were completely pinned back in their own half at this stage of the game, could hardly find a way out as coach Rehm's charges pushed aggressively for an equaliser. Dittgen, who was having an excellent game down the left flank, teed up Schäffler in the middle but the goal-getter missed from close range (60).
It appeared as though SVWW were simply destined not to find the net. A draw would have been deserved but it wasn't meant to be. Either the Bochum defence managed to get a leg in the way at the last second or SVWW chose the wrong moment to take their shots. Knöll and Kyereh had opportunities in the 72nd and 75th minutes respectively as the Bochum defence came under mounting pressure.
Coach Rehm introduced Phillip Tietz, the last nominal striker in the SVWW squad, in the 78th minute as the hosts threw everything at the Bochum defence in a bid to force the equaliser. But the Red & Blacks did not really threaten in the minutes following the substitution. Schäffler's header missed the Bochum goal and instead it was Ganvoula (85) and Anthony Losilla (88) who had opportunities to wrap up the points at the other end. But both of them fired their shots over the crossbar. The Red & Blacks fought to the end but there were to be no further opportunities to score in the remaining minutes and so Bochum emerged from the BRITA-Arena with all three points.
SVWW: Lindner – Mrowca, Mockenhaupt, Dams, Röcker (Tietz, 78), Schwede – Chato – Aigner (Knöll, 46), Kyereh, Dittgen – Schäffler