Free Fall
By: Abby | December 10th, 2010Well, that didn’t go to plan. Instead of readjusting our play and beating a middling 1860 team who have just announced across-the-board pay cuts, we lost to an early goal and had our goalkeeper sent off. From coasting to a winter championship, now we’re in fifth.
I was at a different football game (FC Utrecht finally won while I was watching them), and have generally been too depressed about the game to find highlights. It’s now 3 straight losses, 4 losses out of 5 games over all, and something is wrong. Plus, the next game is against the new leaders of the league, Erzgebirge Aue.
Can we just get to the break already?
No, we can’t. We have to play Aue first, and we’ll have to do it without our first two goalkeepers, as Sejna will be suspended for his sending-off in Munich. Youngster Sascha Burchert will get another chance to prove himself, after not being very convincing in his appearances last season. But he’s young and young players make mistakes. Also suspended is Peter Niemeyer, who has picked up too many yellow cards and has to sit this one out.
However, captain Andre Mijatovic re-joined first-team training this week, and we might see him on Sunday. It will be a big boost to have the captain/capable defender back, especially with Burchert probably needing some protection. Raffael is also back, and if he’s ready to play and fit that is the biggest help we can have.
Also worth nothing, if just for the eyebrow-raising factor: former Hertha favorite Andreas “Zecke” Neuendorf, who you might remember from being the vaguely hipsterish red-headed guy they have talking about the team on Sky Bundesliga every so often, is back in the squad. The 35-year-old left Hertha three years ago to go to Ingolstadt, but is now back and has been playing in the reserves. He’s actually been a top scorer in them as well, and has been added to the first-team squad to “uplift” the players. Which I guess means yell at things. We could probably use someone to do that, but it’s still curious.
It’s a home game Sunday, but Aue, in Saxony near the Czech border, is set to bring a large contingent of away fans. Officially 7500 away tickets have been sold, but Aue are claiming that there will be more than 10,000 in the stadium. Hertha need the home fans now more than ever to make a difference.
Aue are the leaders but not invincible- most of their games are settled by one or two goals, and they were absolutely tonked by Energie Cottbus 6-0 two weeks ago. I’m not saying we will win, but we could, and if we do it would help the holiday season be a lot more cheerful.
Category: match preview
Comments
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Last weeks game was very difficult to watch as on display was a Hertha side devoid of confidence, idea and decidedly rudderless. Once 1860 went ahead that really was it, Hertha huffed and puffed but never looked like scoring.
It is unfortunate that Ramos and Friend have never been given the opportunity to forge a partnership with Ramos stuck out wide for most of the season, so it was never really going to work when they were eventually paired together on Sunday. Friend looks like someone who would thrive on crosses into the box to attack or by bringing others into play from balls played up to him, Hertha don’t get crosses into the box with any regularity and don’t push players forward to support him. Instead Friend is left isolated, feeding off long balls forward and usually getting into a wrestling match with opposition centre-halves.
Hertha seem incapable of changing their game plan, once they went 1 down on Sunday, the game just drifted by. Hertha had possession but they dont move the ball quickly or look to get behind the opposition, always allowing 1860 to keep their shape, let their midfield protect the back four and double up on the Hertha forwards – too many times the ball went back and forth in front of the 1860 defence before it was given away looking for that killer ball or someone ran down a blind alley and lost possession.
The sad thing is it was too easy for 1860, Hertha suddenly look a one paced predictable side
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I enjoy your postings, but Lower Saxony near the Czech border? Near the North Sea would be more like it. Aue is in Saxony not Lower Saxony. Go Hertha!
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Normal service was resumed today. The Hertha side again was much changed but looked solid, worked extremely hard for each other and with the return of
Mijatovic to the back four, looked a more settled and organised unit.Aue were never allowed to settle and created next to nothing. Hertha meanwhile had plenty of possession and probably should have scored more – but it was nice to get back to winning ways with a good performance that will hopefully boost everyone at the club
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