An the end, the fans of TSG 1899 Hoffenheim cheered their team’s victory full of self-mockery. “Away win, away win”, chanted many of the approximately 18,000 supporters of the home team after the valuable 2-0 win over FC Schalke 04 with an own goal by Kral (22nd minute) and a penalty kick used by Bebou on the second attempt (70th). on Easter Sunday evening.
The approximately 12,000 fans of the Westphalian Bundesliga cult club who traveled with them, in a peaceable Easter mood, at least put on a good face about their team’s bad game. Despite all expressions of sympathy from their supporters, the Schalke team presented themselves as quite lost from the start. Bottom of the table, that’s Schalke again after five games in the other relegation place 17, when they nevertheless believed in the enthusiasm of a series that lasted eight games without defeat, but had only brought in twelve points in six draws.
In the 0:3 against Leverkusen, even more so in the 0:2 in Sinsheim, the Gelsenkirchen team often seemed helpless in their far too timid efforts to be able to meet first-class standards. Coach Thomas Reis was “appalled” by a first half in which Schalke managed to hit the crossbar by Marius Bülter (1st) and Maya Yoshida, who caused the penalty (24th), headed into the post.
“Don’t look back anymore”
In the end, Reis’ rhetorical attempt to start all over again was almost comical as he said: “We don’t have to look back anymore because there’s no other team. So we can look ahead again.” With renewed courage? Schalke will need that on Friday (8.30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the Bundesliga and on DAZN) in the basement duel with the penultimate Hertha BSC, who is a little better off. And they don’t have to despair, because VfB Stuttgart is only two points ahead of the royal blues on relegation place 16.
Hoffenheim don’t have to worry about how they plagued Schalke, who were promoted again in the summer of 2022. They seem to have overcome their crisis with 14 Bundesliga games without a win, including five defeats at the start of new coach Pellegrino Matarazzo, and 18th place after matchday 24.
Most recently, they have won three times in a row with fresh spirit and new drive: 3-1 against Hertha BSC, 2-1 in Bremen and now 2-0 against Schalke. “We’re on the way forward,” says Matarazzo, describing his team’s current prospects. His player nature, which used to be more cultivated, now also seems to be resistant and therefore celebrates every spectacularly won duel by high-fiving.
Even in the weeks that were not yet accompanied by positive results, Matarazzo “sensed that something exciting was happening. You saw improvements in performance from week to week.” They are now also reflected in the results, which have brought TSG up to 14th place, five points away from the relegation place.
Captain and goalkeeper Oliver Baumann said on Sunday evening that the team might have needed the impulse to start from the bottom. A few helpful team evenings and constructive games later, the first “super fruits” are now being harvested, because “we have taken the right path with Rino”. Even more: “Sometimes you have to go through hell so that you can see light again afterwards.”
