Marcel shoes speaks even louder, his gaze becomes even more penetrating when he has a message that is important to him. On Sunday afternoon in the catacombs of the Hannover Arena, the “Lilien” goalkeeper said he was happy that there was always time to cool down between the final whistle and the interviews.
Too much had happened, too much had been discharged, the exchange of blows on the field was too armored up, the Darmstadt team were too agitated and hit hard by the 1:2 defeat, which made promotion to the Bundesliga a nail-biter. The parallels to the previous season are obvious: In May 2022, the SVD lost the promotion race because the traditional brand Fortuna Düsseldorf, although it was no longer about anything, once again rose to a strong performance.
In May 2023, the Darmstadt team awarded the second match ball for promotion to the traditional brand Hannover 96, because the Lower Saxony team put in a highly energetic performance at the end of a bad round against the “Lilien”. Schuhen didn’t want to resist a side swipe: They had just managed to stay in the class and were now playing their best game of the season – the “Lilien”, on the other hand, had achieved this goal months ago, “because we function throughout the season”.
Situation triggers fear of loss
And then the 30-year-old put on the look mentioned. “The fact that we were promoted on Matchday 31,” he said, “is sensational when you think about it.” And further: “Now we’re looking forward to Friday.” Schuhen really wanted to score this point – in ins, which he also saw coming, the beginning of talk about a possible promotion panic.
As at home at the Böllenfalltor against St. Pauli (0:3), everything was set up for a promotion break that was then canceled again. After the final whistle, the “Lilien” professionals stood in front of a blue and white wall made up of almost 5,000 Darmstadt fans who had traveled with them, while “Second League, Darmstadt is in” echoed from the home curve.
Captain Fabian Holland gave insights into the fact that the professionals find it difficult “when everything around us is designed to celebrate and everyone is just waiting for it”. In the final games, in which the work of a whole season, yes a booster for the overall development of the club, is so close and yet still at stake, the omens have changed for the players. From the usual and comfortable starting position, as a medium-sized club with a medium-sized budget chasing a huge goal, a situation at the top of the table has developed that triggers fear of loss.
Avoid a nerve-wracking finish
This is completely normal and very human for a team that has already given him and the fans so much fun. The team lives for their big dream,” said coach Torsten Lieberknecht. His tactical changes failed completely for the first time on the third to last matchday and put the Darmstadt team at a 2-0 deficit early on. Goal scorer Phillip Tietz only managed to make it 1:2 (43rd). The fact that two players, Bader and Manu, received yellow and red cards in the final phase spoke for frustration and nervousness in equal measure in the “lily” camp.
The next and last chance to secure promotion early and not rely on a nerve-wracking finish on the last day of the game is this Friday evening (6:30 p.m.) against 1. FC Magdeburg. “We will fight back,” said Lieberknecht. “That’s not a slogan, that’s total conviction.” The man from the Palatinate has let it be known several times that, after this brilliant season in Darmstadt, he would consider it a blatant injustice if it went unrewarded.
There were many weekends this season when the Lilies were out and about in the league in their seven-league boots. Step by step, victory after victory, they worked through successfully with a view to the big goal. And if they faltered for a moment, as they did at the beginning of March (with two defeats in a row), they immediately got back on their feet better than ever. How will it be now? The history of football is full of teams that just don’t want to take the last, decisive step. In contrast to the goalkeeper, President Rüdiger Fritsch did not feel like talking in the Hanoverian catacombs. Just this much: “In the end, the accounts are settled. It’s that simple. Just stay calm and cool, everything’s fine,” he says.
