Dhe game was long over when emotions boiled up one last time. Simon Terodde had had enough of the Augsburg goalkeeper’s antics. So he ran to Rafal Gikiewicz, who, like at the last away game in Bremen, drew the crowd’s furore with his provocative lingering in front of the Schalke fans’ corner.
Schalke’s top scorer grabbed the Pole and pointed him in the direction of the Augsburg fan block, but ended in a scuffle with Gikiewicz, which was later joined by other discussants from both parties. “I’m an emotional player. Maybe I overreacted at times. But it’s also about defending your colors. Emotions are also part of it somewhere,” said Terodde with some distance.
It was the fitting end to a heated game with seven yellow cards and one yellow-red card, the result of which caused a lot of trouble for Schalke. “If you concede the 2: 3 with a majority, it hurts extremely. And that will hurt for the next few days,” said Terodde. “I think it takes a little bit to process that,” said coach Frank Kramer: “It’s a big disappointment for us.”
The promoted team continues to learn a lot in the Bundesliga and is already deep in the table basement after a quarter of the season. In the groundbreaking game, the Royal Blues suffered a 2-3 (1-2) home defeat in the last 20 minutes, despite being 2-0 down and outnumbered. With just one win and six points from eight games, Schalke are 15.
Augsburg, on the other hand, was the only team in the league to win all of the last three games. With twelve points, the FCA is only tenth. But while the relegation place is seven points away, the gap to FC Bayern Munich, who recently lost 0-1 in Augsburg, in third place is only three points.
“I’m very disappointed,” said Schalke’s sporting director Rouven Schröder: “If you have zero points, it’s not progress. But we retrieved everything. How we came back, that’s Schalke. The head stays up. We need this attitude.” But the frustration prevails, as Tom Krauss explained: “It hurts extremely that we get such a blow in the neck.” But Krauss didn’t want to talk about the relegation battle just yet. “It’s way too soon.”
Ermedin Demirovic put FCA ahead with a brace (9th/21st). The Bosnian, who came from Freiburg before the season, has now scored half of Augsburg’s eight goals this season with four goals. Scorer Simon Terodde (33rd) and U21 international Tom Krauss with his first Bundesliga goal (63rd) equalized. Then Mergim Berisha, who was recommended for the national team by FCA manager Stefan Reuter, received a yellow card (70′), but Augsburg scored the winning goal through André Hahn (77′).
02 October 2022, North Rhine-Westphalia, Gelsenkirchen: Football: Bundesliga, FC Schalke 04 – FC Augsburg, 8th matchday, Veltins Arena: Referee Daniel Schlager (M) shows Augsburg’s Mer…gim Berisha (l) the red card. Photo: David Inderlied/dpa – IMPORTANT NOTE: In accordance with the requirements of the DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga or the DFB Deutscher Fußball-Bund, it is prohibited to take photos in the stadium and/or of the game in the form of sequence images and/or video-like photo sequences exploit or have exploited. +++ dpa picture radio +++
Source: dpa/David Indian song
“It was an emotional game from the start. We’re happy to have taken three points. We are extremely proud,” said Demirovic and Hahn added: “It was a great day for us. We always believed in ourselves and in the end we deserved to win.”
Terodde and Polter gave Schalke power
After the extremely defensive style of play in the derby at Borussia Dortmund, Schalke’s coach Frank Kramer set an example and ordered the two classic centre-forwards Terodde and Sebastian Polter into the starting XI for the first time as a forward duo. As a result, the hosts tried more than ever with long balls into the top. The Augsburg set pinpricks from the start and also took the lead early on. Henning Matriciani unhappily extended a Hahn cross with the back of his head and Demirovic flicked the ball low into the far corner for Augsburg’s earliest goal of the season.
A very long ball in front of goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow then gave the Royal Blues their first chance. But the customer wasn’t Terodde or Polter, but Dominick Drexler, who by no means acted like a goalscorer and threw the ball well over the goal (15′). Shortly thereafter, Schalke had to accept the next blow to the neck. As is so often the case, the long ball was intercepted immediately, Hahn switched with a fast diagonal ball, Berisha served Demirovic, who was successful with a low shot. Even more than when it was 0:1, the ball didn’t seem untenable. Schalke seemed defeated, but it was far from it. Terodde scored from a one-two with Drexler and clashed with Elvis Rexhbecaj and Mergim Berisha on the ensuing kick-off. Schalke and Berisha saw a yellow card, as did Marius Bülter, and the Schalke fans, who were always singing anyway, got really loud again.
However, the second half began with a shock for Schalke when central defender Sepp van den Berg injured his ankle and had to be carried off (50′). “What is of course bitter is Sepp van den Berg’s injury. I just heard that there is a suspicion of a fracture. That would be a real setback for us,” Schröder reported later.
But his team ran undaunted, even if the playful means were limited. The guests were now a little lower and only occasionally counterattacked. Schwolow parried a treacherous shot from Berisha well this time (61′). Almost in return, the equalizer fell, Krauss’ one-two partner, like Terodde before, was Drexler again.
Important factor in Schalke’s race to catch up: Dominick Drexler
Source: dpa/David Indian song
Schalke now had the upper hand, especially after Berisha was sent off – and were still caught off guard. “I am very disappointed. If you come back after a 0:2 with the 2:2, you’re fully in the game, the audience is completely there. You have the feeling: Now it’s tipping. You have one more man and then we didn’t do well,” said Schröder. After a cross from Robert Gumny Hahn was there with a header. Schalke tried everything again, even goalkeeper Schwolow attacked at the end and had a chance (90+5).
