Almost anything seems possible in the final stretch of the 3rd division. Permanent leader SV Elversberg (67 points) wobbles. And behind them – with the exception of second-placed SC Freiburg II – five teams are fighting for promotion and relegation places towards the 2nd Bundesliga.
At the very top, everything seemed to have been clarified. SV Elversberg has been enthroned at the top of the 3rd division since matchday 11. Since Freiburg II (64 points) are not allowed to be promoted, Elversberg has a seven-point lead over the relegation place four games before the end. However, the Saarland weakened recently. In the last four games, the SV did not win and in the remaining program with Freiburg II and Wehen Wiesbaden they still have two teams in front of their chest.
It gets really narrow below Freiburg II. SV Wehen Wiesbaden (63) in third place (currently a direct promotion place) and seventh-placed Waldhof Mannheim are separated by six points. In between, Dynamo Dresden (60), VfL Osnabrück (60) and 1. FC Saarbrücken (59) are other traditional teams with a big appetite for bigger professional football. The overview.
SV Wehen Wiesbaden (3rd place, 63 points, +20 goals)
Lage: Like leader Elversberg, Wehen Wiesbaden has recently started to stutter. After five wins in a row, there was only one point from two games. A lot could be decided for Markus Kauczinski’s team in the away game on Saturday (06.05.2023) at pursuer Dresden (live from 2 p.m. on MDR television and as a live stream on sportschau.de).
Wehen won the first leg against Dresden 1-0 with Prtajin (left).
Remaining program: Dresden (A), Verl (H), Elversberg (A), Halle (H)
Story: In 2020 Wehen Wiesbaden was last in the 2nd division. The Hessians would also be experienced in relegation if necessary. In 2019, they managed to climb against FC Ingolstadt.
Dynamo Dresden (4th place, 60 points, +20 goals)
Lage: In the second half of the season, the Saxons found their “flow”. With 33 points, Dynamo is the best team in the second half of the season. There have been four points from the “top game weeks” against Saarbrücken, Mannheim and Freiburg II. The fourth top game against Wehen on Saturday will show how much that is worth. The top form of playmaker Ahmet Arslan, who collected eleven points in the last ten games, could help.
Top third division goalscorer with 21 goals: Dresden’s Ahmet Arslan
Remaining program: Wehen (H), Zwickau (A), Meppen (A), Oldenburg (H)
Story: After the relegation knockout last year against Kaiserslautern, Dynamo would be a real elevator team between these leagues with their fifth second division promotion in 20 years.
VfL Osnabrück (5th place, 60 points, +17 goals)
Lage: From 16th place on the 13th matchday, Osnabrück made a real run towards the promotion places. Between mid-November and the end of March there was only one defeat under coach Tobias Schweinsteiger. Most recently, leader Elversberg was defeated 1-0. Form and the rest of the program could fit at Osnabrück in the promotion race.
Coach in Osnabrück since August 2022: Tobias Schweinsteiger
Remaining program: Verl (A), Meppen (H), Viktoria Cologne (A), Dortmund II (H)
Story: In 2021, Ingolstadt sent VfL to the third division in the relegation. Like Dresden, Osnabrück is a commuter between the leagues and could be promoted for the fifth time since 2004.
1. FC Saarbrücken (6th place, 59 points, +21 goals)
Lage: With a bad series at the beginning of the year, Saarbrücken dropped out of the top three. Most recently, however, FCS gained self-confidence, especially at home: there were five victories in Ludwigspark, including against 1860 Munich, Dresden and Mannheim. On the other hand, coach Rüdiger Ziehl’s team tended to stumble away – which could be devastating in the final sprint.
Rebuilt and renovated by 2021: Saarbrücken’s Luwigsparkstadion
Remaining program: Oldenburg (A), Halle (H), Duisburg (A), Viktoria Cologne (H)
Story: Since relegation in 2006, Saarbrücken has not been in the second division. The club struggled through the regional and upper leagues before returning to professional football in 2020.
Waldhof Mannheim (7th place, 57 points, +2 goals)
Lage: For the dream of returning to the second division, a lot has to go right in the final sprint for the team that is strongest at home in the third division. Waldhof didn’t score against the top teams in the second half of the season, but reliably against teams from below. However, that could be the big plus point for the 1983 second division champions in their program in the final sprint.
Legendary coach in Mannheim: Klaus Schlappner (1980-87)
Remaining program: Zwickau (A), Oldenburg (H), 1860 Munich (A), Duisburg (H)
Story: The really glorious days are long gone. Until promotion to the third division in 2020, Waldhof languished for 17 years in the regional and upper leagues. Mannheim was part of the inventory of the Bundesliga under legendary coach Klaus Schlappner in the 1980s, before it went into the 2nd division in the 90s and then went much deeper.
Everything about the 3rd league on Saturday from 6 p.m. in the sports show in the first.
