Sports return after cancer diagnosis
Gladbach loses, but for Lainer “the moments of happiness outweigh”
Status: 21.01.2024 | Reading time: 4 minutes
Borussia Mönchengladbach missed the jump to a single-digit place in the table against Augsburg. The fans and team are still very happy. When Stefan Lainer comes on, the audience rises from their seats.
Stefan Lainer knew very well that his last Bundesliga game had been 239 days ago and that FC Augsburg had also been his opponent. The hard-working player from Mönchengladbach had been working towards his comeback for more than eight months and had beaten cancer in the process.
In this respect, the 1:2 (1:0) defeat initially became a minor matter for him. “Difficult, but for me the moments of happiness outweigh the negatives,” said the 31-year-old Austrian after his comeback. Lainer came on as a substitute in the 71st minute.
In terms of sport, the game was a bitter setback for Borussia, but it wasn’t just Lainer himself who was happy at the end of the 18th matchday. Due to the not undeserved home defeat, the team missed the jump to a single-digit place in the table. The fact that many Borussia fans left the stadium with a pleasant feeling was due to the return of Stefan Lainer, who played in the Bundesliga for around 20 minutes for the first time 178 days after his cancer diagnosis was made public.
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Jordan, who had already scored in the 3-1 win against VfB Stuttgart the previous week, gave Borussia, who had previously been unbeaten in eight competitive games at home, the lead with his fourth goal of the season (26th minute). Phillip Tietz (47′) and Arne Engels (51′) turned the game around with a double strike straight after the break. With their first win in Gladbach in almost nine years, the Augsburg team ended a lull of just one point from four games and, with 21 points, are closer to a European Cup place than the relegation place. This also applies to Gladbach, but Borussia slipped to twelfth place.
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At 5:25 p.m. there was a huge cheer in Borussia Park for the first time: Lainer’s name was read out. During the summer preparation, the Austrian right-back was diagnosed with lymph node cancer. He returned to training in November and has now made his competitive comeback. “Of course everyone is overjoyed and very pleased, especially for him and his family, who have been through a difficult time,” said Borussia coach Gerardo Seoane before the game on DAZN.
Augsburg turns the game around
The guests from Augsburg took the game into their own hands and had three great chances to take the lead within just under three minutes. First Marvin Friedrich blocked a shot from Ermedin Demirovic at the goal that was left by goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas after a clearance (10th), then Nico Elvedi deflected a shot from Fredrik Jensen (11th) next to the goal after a bad pass from Joe Scally , finally Nicolas saved a strong header from Ruben Vargas (12th).
Augsburg’s enthusiasm was stopped by the usual throwing of chocolate coins this weekend in protest against the planned DFL investor and the resulting two interruptions. First, the game was stopped for almost six minutes, only a minute after the restart, chocolate coins flew out of the Gladbach fan block again and referee Martin Petersen interrupted it for another four minutes.
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And then the goal fell on the other side: After a corner, FCA keeper Finn Dahmen sailed under the ball, Alassane Pléa crossed in, Jordan’s header was blocked by Augsburg captain Jeffrey Gouweleeuw, but the US international pushed the rebound over the line.
The game remained balanced until the break, but Augsburg came out of the locker room very strong. First, Tietz, who was now coached by national coach Julian Nagelsmann, ended his goal drought that had been going on since the beginning of November with a header from Kevin Mbabu’s cross, then Engels scored from twelve meters with a well-placed left-footed shot. Shortly afterwards, Vargas even missed the preliminary decision (54th).
Deserved threesome: Augsburg’s Dion Beljo, Elvis Rexhbeçaj and Ermedin Demirovic (from left to right) after the final whistle
Source: dpa/Marius Becker
Things got really loud at 7:06 p.m. But not because of the equalizer, but because of the substitution of Lainer, for whom almost all of the 44,867 spectators rose from their seats.
“It’s difficult to put the whole thing into words. It’s been a long time, and now to finally be back on the pitch and in front of the fans is special. It was definitely the most emotional game of my career. It’s wonderful that I did well and that I felt comfortable and that I’ve now got the minutes,” said Lainer, who also used the hustle and bustle to remember a few people and to thank his doctor, his family and his wife: “I had been in individual training for a very long time. A lot of people took very good care of me. I was always in very good hands.”
