Stunning: Heidenheim on the verge of reaching the European Cup
The remarkable promoted team 1. FC Heidenheim is dreaming of the European Cup. If Bayer Leverkusen wins the DFB Cup, this village club's fairytale will be complete. One player, who surprisingly, could spoil this for his new club.
Eren Dinkci had a mixed feeling of joy and sadness. Understandably so, he helped 1. FC Heidenheim get closer to their dream with his two goals against 1. FC Köln in their final match, resulting in a 4:1 win. As the best-placed promoted team in six years, they shall face reality if champions Bayer Leverkusen, who are still undefeated this season, win the DFB Cup against second-division side 1. FC Kaiserslautern. All seemed reasonable.
However, the 22-year-old Dinkci won't be playing in Europe next season as he's moving to SC Freiberg, who missed out on eighth place due to their heartbreaking loss at Union Berlin. This move pushed Freiberg back to tenth place behind Heidenheim and Werder Bremen due to their poorer goal difference. "Well, it didn't really go as planned," Dinkci remarked, affecting him, Freiberg, and his previous team.
The first high-profile departure
Dinkci's exit was anticipated by many, and the roaring ovation when he was substituted against 1. FC Köln exemplified the respect he garnered from the fans in Ostalb. Now he's the first high-profile player to leave, raising concerns among the club's management. CEO Holger Sanwald, with coach Frank Schmidt, the mastermind of this astounding success, fears that more players may feel the itch to leave. He openly admitted, "I'm very worried that other players will also start nursing desires."
Jan-Niklas Beste, scorer of the 4:1 goal on Saturday, and other players like Lennard Maloney (contract until 2025) and center forward Tim Kleindienst (contract until 2027) are also under contention from other teams. If a reasonable transfer fee is offered, Heidenheim might have to weaken and let their key players go. As of January, Sanwald had been unsuccessful in renewing the contract of Kevin Sessa, another scorer in Heidenheim's final matches against Freiburg and Cologne. There are some positive signs from Beste: "Honestly, I haven't had any talks with other clubs yet. And I'm not just saying that. For now, I'm happy to go on vacation, and I still have a year left on my contract."
"We still need a few days to grasp it"
The player called up for the national team for the first time a few weeks ago, but had to cancel due to an injury, could not fully fathom the magnitude of this miracle from the Ostalb. "We haven't fully understood it yet. It needs a few days' distance, a few days' rest," said Beste. "One year has passed, it's crazy."
Heidenheim wishes to hold fast to their sporting principles and their economically sound path. They trust in the talent of Schmidt to improve the seemingly anonymous reinforcements, but they also want to invest in their infrastructure: in 2026, Sanwald hopes that their new stadium on Schlossberg will have 10,000 more seats, putting the total at 25,000. However, their next priority is their game against Berlin on Saturday. "It might actually work out."
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Source: www.ntv.de
