Bundesliga 2 - Niederlechner lets Hertha cheer
At the final whistle, Hertha striker Florian Niederlechner was already sitting on the bench in the bitterly cold Olympiastadion, wrapped up tight. Unlike in many previous games, this time the treble scorer and his team had made sure the situation was clear early on. "When it's on, it's on," said the in-form 33-year-old after the second division club's 5:1 (2:1) win over promoted SV Elversberg.
He had the match ball under his arm after his hat-trick. Niederlechner scored for the third game in a row. "Six weeks ago, we would probably have counter-attacked and conceded a goal. Today he deflects it into the goal," said the attacker about his goal to make it 4:1, which finally decided the game in the second half. Recently, the Bundesliga relegated team had repeatedly given away leads.
Linus Gechter (12th minute), Niederlechner (23rd, 61st and 67th) and Jonjoe Kenny (71st) scored for the home side in front of 33,097 spectators. Thore Jacobsen (15) made it 1:1 in the meantime.
The Berliners jumped to eighth place and are now three points behind Saarland. However, if they are to be in the thick of the promotion race by Christmas, as coach Pal Dardai had hoped, the Berliners will have to make up further ground - and also improve their play.
This time, the first half was the problem. The hosts were lucky on Sunday not to concede several goals in the first ten minutes. "We invited the opposition in with misplaced passes that you don't normally see in the fifth or sixth division," scolded Dardai. "The first half was unpalatable for me, shameful."
Berlin's goals were more the product of chance. Twice, the Saarlanders failed to clear the ball in the five-meter box. Gechter and Niederlechner converted the rebounds. Jacobsen equalized with a shot from around 20 metres, which Ernst only saw late on.
Winger Fabian Reese was a little more diplomatic: "It would be wrong to call it undeserved, but we made life difficult for ourselves in the first half." Dardai then made some changes in the second half and saw "real Hertha soccer".
Above all, his team made the most of their opportunities. Niederlechner scored with a shot from a turn that seemed to be saved. Maurice Neubauer deflected the ball unstoppably to make it 4:1. Kenny scored with a powerful ball from the back.
On Wednesday, the capital city club will host Hamburger SV in the round of 16 of the DFB Cup (20:45/Sky). Floodlights, knockout round and a full house. "If we play a first half like that, it will be difficult for us to progress," said Niederlechner.
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- Pal Dardai, the coach of Hertha BSC, acknowledged that they need to improve their first-half performance if they want to remain in contention for promotion in the Bundesliga 2.
- In the match against SV Elversberg at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, Linus Gechter scored the opening goal for Hertha BSC in the 12th minute.
- The 5:1 victory over SV Elversberg moved Hertha BSC up to eighth place in the Bundesliga 2 table, three points behind Saarland, but they still have work to do if they want to compete for promotion by Christmas.
- The game was played in front of a crowd of 33,097 spectators, but despite the strong attendance, Hertha BSC struggled in the first half, inviting pressure from SV Elversberg and only really coming to life in the second half.
- The second half of the game saw Hertha BSC take control, with Florian Niederlechner scoring a hat-trick, including a deflected goal that put the game beyond reach for SV Elversberg.
- Hertha BSC will have the opportunity to put their first-half struggles behind them when they host Hamburger SV in the round of 16 of the DFB Cup on Wednesday. If they repeat their first-half performance against SV Elversberg, it could be a difficult night for them in the floodlit knockout round.
Source: www.stern.de
