Fiél's "pain" after late strike from Schalke friends
Cristian Fiél was saddened by the bitter end to this atmospheric afternoon of soccer at the Max Morlock Stadium. "That was a typical draw game for me. Giving it away like that is painful for me," said the FC Nürnberg coach after the 2-1 (0-1) defeat in the big friendly against FC Schalke 04.
The visitors' winning goal in the 89th minute with a header from Danny Latza after the umpteenth dangerous free-kick from Thomas Ouwejan was the annoying end to a remarkable week for the club, with victory in Kiel and a passionate show of strength against Hansa Rostock to reach the last 16 of the DFB Cup. "The pendulum could have swung in one direction or the other in the second half," said FCN goalkeeper Christian Mathenia, who was also unable to prevent Dominick Drexler's 0:1 (36'). Florian Flick equalized against his former club to make it 1:1 (47').
Fiél was annoyed about the first 45 minutes. "We played to play, we passed to pass. We didn't play to cause our opponents pain and become dangerous. We had no intensity in the game," he said. "Then we come out of half-time well and have the momentum where we could have gone one better." However, they failed to do so until Kanji Okunuki's final top chance.
"The frustration is enormous," commented Jan Gyamerah. "We didn't play our best game today," said the full-back, who, like coach Fiél, was particularly annoyed about Schalke's late winning goal: "It's 1-1, you have to take the point."
In the final phase, Nuremberg simply allowed their opponents too many set-pieces. "Those free-kicks from Thomas Ouwejan are a weapon, every ball comes in," said Fiél appreciatively. Neither the coach nor his players wanted to talk about a setback on the path to the top. "We're on the right track. On the whole, I'm satisfied," said Fiél. "We'll keep at it," assured captain Mathenia. "It's been ten exhausting days, I'm extremely proud of the team," said youngster Nathaniel Brown.
"Now the players can take a deep breath. We'll start preparing for Paderborn on Tuesday," announced Fiél with a view to the last match before the final international break in 2023. The 50,000 spectators in the sold-out stadium provided a great setting on Saturday. They also celebrated the unique fan friendship between the "Club" and Schalke with an impressive XXL choreography before kick-off. Fiél was also impressed: "The fans put on an amazing show."
Despite the impressive crowd and fan friendship with Schalke, 1st FC Nuremberg suffered a late 2-1 defeat in the friendly against FC Schalke 04 in the Bundesliga 2. Despite their strong performance in the second half, they missed several opportunities and conceded a goal from a dangerous free-kick in the 89th minute, which was a set-piece weapon for FC Schalke's Thomas Ouwejan.
In the upcoming Bundesliga 2 match against Paderborn, 1st FC Nuremberg will look to bounce back and continue their progress towards the top, as coach Fiél and captain Christian Mathenia have assured the team is on the right track. Meanwhile, 1st FC Nuremberg will also face FC Schalke 04 again in the Bundesliga 2, with the two teams set to meet in the near future in the German second division.
Source: www.dpa.com
