With his baseball cap pulled low over his face, Luca Pfeiffer scurried out of the dressing room almost unnoticed behind the journalists, while goal scorer and fellow striker Tim Skarke was in front to answer questions. For the 27-year-old attacker, the game against FC Bayern Munich was the lowest point since his return to the Lilies. For the first time this season, coach Torsten Lieberknecht did not nominate Pfeiffer for the squad. Instead, Aaron Seydel, who was actually retired at the start of the season, came to play against the record champions.
The non-consideration of Pfeiffer was due to sporting reasons, said Lieberknecht. He decided on other players due to the squad situation: “With Luca, I hope that he gets a stimulus again and says to himself: I’ll stick with it and try to get everything out of my body to help us as a team at least achieve relegation.”
One goal, four assists, three goals
With great expectations, Pfeiffer returned from VfB Stuttgart to SV Darmstadt 98 on loan at the start of the season. He scored 17 goals for the Lilies in the 2021/22 second division season and, together with Phillip Tietz, formed one of the best attacking duos in the league. But so far he has not been able to meet the expectations placed on him.
Pfeiffer managed one poor goal in 22 appearances, plus four assists. Pfeiffer had played in every game up until matchday 20. Afterwards he sat on the bench several times. He was completely out of the squad against Bayern.
Maybe everything would have been completely different if he hadn’t hit the aluminum but rather the goal in the first game of the season after coming on as a substitute against Eintracht Frankfurt. This happened two more times.
In the Bundesliga statistics, Pfeiffer is in third place with three hits on the post or crossbar – level with Bayern players Leroy Sane and Kingsley Coman. However, simply looking for an explanation in the final bad luck is not enough. Leverkusen’s Florian Wirtz is in first place with five aluminum goals – and he is having an outstanding season.
Polter’s commitment didn’t bring any boost either
Nevertheless, one had the impression that Pfeiffer’s shoulders and head sank lower and lower as the season progressed. The effort could never be denied. But success has not yet materialized.
The signing of Sebastian Polter during the winter break didn’t bring any improvement. The loanee from FC Schalke 04 is a similar type to Pfeiffer’s former attack partner Tietz, with his header strength and ability to put down balls. But Polter hasn’t really arrived in Darmstadt yet – probably because of his groin operation in December.
Return to Stuttgart questionable
What will happen next for Pfeiffer is unclear. His loan in Darmstadt expires at the end of the season. A return to the designated Champions League participant VfB Stuttgart, where Deniz Undav and Serhou Guirassy are currently swirling in the attack, is questionable. Pfeiffer had not impressed there last season and was eliminated at the start of the current season.
His contract with the Swabians runs until summer 2026. Another loan would therefore be possible. Maybe also with Darmstadt. Because at least in the second division, Pfeiffer has already proven that he can score goals.
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Image sources
- SVD-VfB-2023-24-blog-0007: Arthur Schönbein
2024-03-21 16:03:17
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