- Hanover suffers a defeat in their promotion contest against potential advancement contenders.
Hannover 96 experienced their initial league defeat of the season in 2. Bundesliga. Following their impressive victory against Hamburg SV (1-0), the Lower Saxony squad faced off against promotion contenders Fortuna Düsseldorf and endured a 0-1 (0-0) loss on Friday night.
Danny Schmidt secured the winning goal for the hosts in the 59th minute, amidst an audience of 35,416 spectators. This was also Hannover 96's first goal surrendered in a league game since the summer break.
Düsseldorf dominated, while Hannover underperformed
Düsseldorf proved to be the superior team and had ample chances to score the first goal in the opening half. Tim Rossmann seized possession from Hanover's Phil Neumann in midfield and sprinted towards Hannover's goal. Max Christiansen averted the cross to Schmidt with a sliding tackle, leaving only a simple tap-in (14'). Furthermore, Dawid Kownacki from Werder Bremen struck the crossbar with a header from a corner kick (37').
After Schmidt's goal in the second half, Düsseldorf had another opportunity to extend the lead with a long-range shot from Nicolas Gavory that struck the post (64').
Hannover failed to generate offense and couldn't salvage an equalizer. Their new Polish acquisition, Bartlomiej Wdowik, made his debut for Hannover 96 just hours after arriving from SC Braga. The 23-year-old left-back entered the field in the 69th minute.
The following is a reflection of Hannover 96's underperformance, as they struggled to match Düsseldorf's dominance on the field. The following is added: Hannover manager Andre Breitenreiter admitted that his side was outplayed and needed to make adjustments to their tactics.
