At some point in the final phase, Stefan Kuntz turned to live commentator Wolff-Christoph Fuss with an unusual request. Does he actually have to be down on the lawn when the game begins to be read? The current Turkey national coach fears that he would miss a few minutes of this breathtaking spectacle if he had to make his way from the commentary position down to the pitch before the final whistle. The idea of wandering around in a windowless stairwell while something extraordinary is happening on the square – for Kuntz this would be horror.
Those who have football in their hearts found themselves unable to take their eyes off the action for even a second on Friday evening: Hamburger SV’s 5: 3 (1: 2) against Schalke 04 had everything that football can ideally offer: Goals, scenes in the penalty area, aluminum hits, dynamism, a dismissal, racy duels – and endless excitement. It was drama with crazy twists that the two traditional clubs performed in front of 57,000 spectators and an audience of millions in front of the screens. Best advertising for professional football – and above all for the second division, which had already been announced as the “best second division of all time” because of its extremely prominent line-up.
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It could happen like this. The season promises to be very sexy. “I like that word,” said HSV coach Tim Walter and grinned: “The second division is very attractive and sexy.”
Hamburg were the better team in the duel between the two top favorites for promotion – but that was pretty much the only thing that was clear that evening. Both teams fought with open eyes. The hosts, whose promotion ambitions only shattered in the relegation last season, fired on the Bundesliga relegated team from the start. Schalke quickly started to swim, unable to defend the multitude of dangerous crosses in their own penalty area. Without their outstanding goalkeeper Marius Müller, Schalke would have been lost early on.
A 17-year-old scored the best goal of the evening
In the 17th minute, HSV center forward Robert Glatzel then pushed the ball over the line after a dream cross from newcomer Immanuel Pherai, shortly afterwards he failed again at Müller. If the Hamburgers can be reproached, it is that they let their competitors live.
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But this is the only way this game, which will be talked about for a long time, could develop. And that’s the only reason why a 17-year-old debutant was able to show what he’s capable of: Assan Ouédraogo. The son of a former international from Bukina Fasos, who came to Europe and later to the Ruhr area at the end of the 1990s, scored what is probably the most beautiful of the eight goals: the youngster took a difficult ball in one flowing movement, hit a hook and gave Schalke the surprising one Compensation (22nd). “Thomas, you have a real jewel in this boy,” Walter said later to his fellow Schalke coach Thomas Reis.
Schalke’s Assan Ouedraogo celebrates his goal
Quelle: Getty Images/Cathrin Mueller
And yet the talent that Kuntz, the former German U21 coach, also predicted a great future for, remained just a splash of color in a firework display: The Hamburgers continued to storm, but missed the best chances. When Thomas Ouwejan shot Schalke into the lead with a direct acceptance on the break, the game was turned upside down. Should HSV, as so often in recent years, die again in beauty?
“It’s the kind of football where you take everyone with you”
No, not this time – although it would have been possible in this feverish atmosphere. The first half was wild – the second was even wilder: Glatzel failed to Müller, Schalke’s veteran Simon Terodde scored (53rd) – but the goal didn’t count because of an offside position. Schalke’s defender Cissé lost his overview in the rush and then his nerves, kept the furious Glatzel in the penalty area, Benes scored the penalty to make it 2-2 (56th). Shortly thereafter, Benes put HSV back in front (60′). Then Terodde scored again (66′) after a great pass from Schalke’s newcomer Schallenberg. This time it was the goal that counted: It was goal number 173 for the most successful second division goal scorer of all time.
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“Hopefully a lot of girls are watching us boys. Because this is the kind of football where you take everyone with you. After that, when you see that, you just want to go out there and play yourself,” Kuntz said. There is a good chance that this game will inspire youngsters: a total of 7.2 million viewers watched the game on the private broadcaster. In addition, Sky also broadcast.
But it was to get even better. After repeated foul play, Cissé saw the yellow-red card and left the field in tears (71′). It got even louder in the stands when Glatzel scored the well-deserved 4:3 for HSV from a tight angle (90+1). Dompé then set the final point with the 5:3 final score. The Volkspark exploded – even the 6,000 Schalke fans who had traveled with them applauded for minutes.
Impressive first statement of these traditional clubs
“It was an incredibly exciting game, even though as a coach I have to say: a game that ended 5:3 would be too nerve-wracking for me,” Felix Magath told WELT AM SONNTAG the following day. The former champion player of HSV and former coach of Schalke has a point: Such an offensive spectacle is not possible without a blunder on the defensive. But even Magath had “a certain understanding” for the only legitimate view of the fans: Who cares? It’s entertainment. Football as it should be – the Bundesliga uses this slogan to advertise itself abroad. This second division start came very close to that.
In any case, it was an impressive first statement from two traditional clubs that they didn’t just claim to belong in the first division. It was only the beginning though. “But HSV and Schalke will rise,” said Magath. Of that he is quite sure.
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