- Aue hopes for a little sensation in the bonus game
Third-tier football club FC Erzgebirge Aue aims to cause an upset in the DFB-Pokal. "We might only have 20 percent, but that's what we need to focus on," said Aue coach Pavel Dotchev ahead of the first-round home game against Bundesliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday (13:00 CET/Sky). "We've played well as a team in the first two games. I hope we can pull off a little sensation."
For the 58-year-old, the match is a bonus game, a reward for the completed season. "We have a full stadium, an attractive opponent, what more could you want?" asked the Bulgarian. And with two wins in the first two league games against Hannover 96 II and relegated VfL Osnabrück, the underdog is already in a certain rhythm, while Gladbach is playing their first competitive game. Additionally, the experienced coach is delving into his bag of tricks from the past. As coach of Preußen Münster, he achieved a 4:2 win after extra time against Werder Bremen on August 19, 2012.
Captain Männel's Memories
Martin Männel, who was in goal for the then first-round match against the Niederrhein team on August 14, 2010, has less pleasant memories. The goalkeeper struggled with the hair of Gladbach's Brazilian defender Dante during corner kicks and couldn't prevent the 1:3 defeat. "The result has stayed with me," said the 36-year-old, "we didn't play a bad game back then, and the result was a bit too high. We could have pulled off a little sensation."
Like Dotchev, Männel is relying on the existing playing rhythm and the games in the preparation against Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig as a source of confidence. The captain calls for the same courage as in the previous games to ensure a more positive result this time than 14 years ago: "20 percent means it's not impossible."
In the past, FC Erzgebirge Aue's goalkeeper Martin Männel faced Borussia Mönchengladbach in a DFB-Pokal first-round match and remembers the 1:3 defeat, despite playing well. Like his current coach Pavel Dotchev, Männel believes in their current playing rhythm and believes they can pull off an upset, with 20% chances.
With two wins in their first two league games against Hannover 96 II and VfL Osnabrück, FC Erzgebirge Aue has shown good form in soccer, and captain Männel is calling for the same courage to ensure a better result against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the DFB-Pokal.
