It was nothing with the present for the trainer’s 53rd birthday. Alexander Schmidt wanted something that could be counted, but instead of points, Dynamo only receives compliments for a good performance. The black and yellow lose at FC Schalke 04 3-0 – and defender Robin Becker can only agree that this defeat is too high. But there are no posture marks in football and the only statistic that ultimately counts is the result. “It’s bitter and hurts us,” admits the head coach.
Most of all, it’s sobering. The sixth loss in the seventh game. “Anyone who has seen the game is amazed that it turned out that way,” says Schmidt. “Everything went well – except for the key moments when we weren’t clever enough. Schalke took advantage of that.”
How is this defeat in the favorites to be classified?
Instead of the hoped-for and quite possible sense of achievement, Dynamo goes home from Gelsenkirchen with the next disappointment. The difference? The efficiency. “They scored the goals, even if the 0: 1 was a bit lucky. They simply have quality, leave little behind and take advantage of their chances,” said Becker soberly.
After a good hour, a 1: 7 is on the video cube under the open arena roof – Dynamo is clearly leading towards corners at this point. But when it comes to the standards, the Dresdeners do not develop any significant risk of scoring, a significant shortcoming, because they deprive themselves of the chances that were hard-won and fought for.
Christoph Daferner is annoyed about a missed opportunity. Schalke, on the other hand, was more efficient. © dpa
How it could work is shown in the seventh attempt. S04 goalkeeper Martin Fraisl steers Pascal Sohm’s header over the bar – corner again. Again nothing. “We didn’t manage to take the next goal,” explains Becker. Schalke shows how it works – and that with the second corner. Marius Bülter comes free to the header – the 0: 2 is the decision.
Dynamo not only holds against it, they are more active after the break, at times they hardly let Schalke over the middle line. But not necessarily enough. Resign? No option! Michael Akoto clears Christoph Daferner, whose shot from an acute angle is again blocked by Fraisl (69th). The compensation is deserved. Schmidt also sends a signal with his changes, for example when he replaced the offensively-minded Luca Herrmann for interceptor Yannick Stark. Full bottle. Even after the blow in the neck, the only thing that is visibly missing is belief.
Morris Schröter kneels disappointed on the grass after the game. Dynamo performed well but lost 3-0. © dpa
What is particularly annoying that evening is that they even catch the 0: 3 in stoppage time. Again standard, this time free kick. This time Marcin Kaminski is free and hits with his head. So in the end it is a lesson, at least in terms of standards and effectiveness. Because in all other statistical values except the result, Dynamo is ahead – among other things with 18:11 shots on goal and 57 percent won duels. “It sounds stupid, but the bottom line is that I have to praise the team for their committed performance,” says the head coach.
Why was Dynamo behind with 0: 1 at the break?
No, Dynamo doesn’t start like the rabbit in front of the queue. Before that, Schmidt had warned: “If we are passive, we have no chance.” In a game that was played very intensively from the start, Dresden even had the first conclusion, but Christoph Daferner’s shot from the edge of the penalty area landed right in the arms of S04 goalkeeper Martin Fraisl (11th). “The team accepted the game well, were brave and played everything,” says Schmidt.
But Schalke indicates his offensive force more than once. At the goal, luck and bad luck are closely related: Rodrigo hits the post, the ball already seems out, but Dynamo cannot clear it properly. Goalkeeper Kevin Broll fends off a shot from Reinhard Ranftl to the side, but to the front. He has to chalk that up. Robin Becker wants to knock the ball away – and shoots the rushing Thomas Ouwejan.
Thomas Ouwejan blocks Robin Becker’s liberation. The ball goes into the goal for Schalke leadership. © dpa
“A strange goal,” says Schmidt. In addition, Schalke is now leading relatively early. “The longer it is open, the more opportunities we will have to turn the game in our direction,” said Chris Löwe. After his cross, Morris Schröter comes to the header, but puts him next to it (28th). And his shot from the turn goes over (30.) Dynamo is by no means without a chance, even Stark comes before the break for a shot from 16 meters – held.
What about Schalke’s striker Terodde?
And what about Simon Terodde? The striker has already scored eleven times this season, drawing level with the previous second division record holder Dieter Schatzschneider, who was once at Hannover 96. With his 154th goal, he would stand alone at the top. “We have to make his life as difficult as possible and put his suppliers in the cold, which means: prevent flanks so that he doesn’t get into the situation at all,” said Schmidt.
Kevin Broll didn’t suffer a goal from Schalke’s top scorer Simon Terodde, but in the end he got the ball out of his goal three times. © dpa
That works, although the 0: 1 also arises on the wing, where Stark and Paul Will do not prevent the input. But Terodde also shows himself to be a worker in the service of the team, lets himself fall from time to time, gives way to the outside world. Hard work for Dynamo’s three-chain. And right at the beginning of the second half he gets the shot – Broll has the ball safely. And in stoppage time, the striker missed a flank with his head by a hair’s breadth. This is not a consolation, but at least the Schalke did not make history against Dynamo.
How was the return of the Dynamo fans away from home?
After a year and a half, Dynamo is again playing in front of a really big crowd: with 54,526 spectators, the arena at Schalke is officially sold out, including 4,307 Dynamo fans. Around 2,000 places had to remain free for security reasons. The declared aim was to “ensure a trouble-free journey so that everyone is in the stadium on time before kick-off”. SGD press spokesman Ronny Zimmermann had announced it and emphasized that clubs and all security-relevant authorities were in agreement on this. Shortly before kick-off, everyone was actually in the stadium, with the kick-off the mood rose – on both sides.
However, there had apparently been incidents during controls beforehand, an officer was hit by a stranger with a Dresden license plate. The police could not confirm in the evening whether it was a dynamo fan. According to Twitter reports, the ultras buses are said to have been stopped by the police at a rest area on the A2 just before Gelsenkirchen in order to determine the personal details of the inmates. That took four hours. Then they were brought directly to the arena by shuttle buses, so that a fan march feared by the security forces was prevented.
Police officers secure the arrival of fans at the stadium. In the end, all spectators were in the arena in time for the game to start. © dpa / David Inderlied
Dynamo had sent ten supervisors and 40 security guards to Gelsenkirchen to look after its own fan scene. “We want to experience a great football festival together,” said Zimmermann. And it will be – even after the clear defeat, the team is cheered on by the supporters. “With fans it’s a really great feeling again, even when the opposing whistles whistle you,” says Becker. “What the Dresden fans did today, I have to take my hat off to that. It is not a matter of course that fans celebrate you like that after the 3-0 defeat.”
How did the coach set up the team?
Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer had to stay at home after he “had to go to the toilet more often” on Friday night, as Schmidt had said. For him, Morris Schröter returned to the starting line-up. Michael Akoto was also back right from the start after having recovered from a torn muscle, which meant that the trainer relied on a three-way chain with him, Michael Sollbauer and Antonis Aidonis. The coach’s announcement: “Regardless of the system, it is important that we don’t hide. We have to act and be bold.”
But that also meant: Captain Sebastian Mai stayed out again – and comes as a striker after the 2-0 draw. On the other hand, Paul Will, who last played in the 3-0 win against Werder Bremen, was allowed to play. Julius Kade first took a seat on the bench.
He comes after the break for Löwe, who saw the yellow card early. So Schmidt did not change his position exactly. Kade is the more offensive variant compared to the late newcomer Guram Giorbelidze, who comes in later. In addition, Pascal Sohm replaced Heinz Mörschl, who was too disembodied.
