Anyone who has not followed professional football in Germany for a few years should rub their eyes in amazement with a look at the beginning of the second division season 2021/22. And consider the House of Commons to be the first division. After all, there are a number of teams with a glorious Bundesliga past in the second division, including former German champions, former Bayern hunters and former Champions League participants.
Right at the beginning on Friday (8.30 p.m. / Sat.1 and Sky), Schalke 04 and Hamburger SV will face two heavyweights who not only carry a lot of tradition with them, but also many problems. Both clubs are financially troubled, both longing to go back to the times when they were in the limelight. Schalke has been relegated without a hitch after a horror season, the former Bundesliga evergreen HSV has managed the feat of missing the return to the top division three times in a row.
S04 withdrew to a quarantine training camp before the start of the season after regular goalkeeper Ralf Fährmann was positively tested for Corona. Michael Langer is in goal for Fährmann in the first game. The HSV are plagued by injury concerns. Robin Meißner (torn knee ligament) and the battered Sonny Kittel are missing, the use of midfielder Amadou Onana is uncertain.
20,000 fans can be present in the Veltnis-Arena. Schalke and HSV combine large fan communities and equally high expectations. Both clubs really want to go back up. The pressure to succeed is correspondingly great. Which also applies to the other traditional clubs. Werder Bremen’s relegation hit last season much more unexpectedly than Schalke. Hannover 96 and 1. FC Nürnberg have been stuck in the second division for years, but like Fortuna from Düsseldorf they are hoping that the promotion could actually work out in the new season. With Karlsruher SC, St. Pauli and the two promoters Hansa Rostock and Dynamo Dresden, other well-known clubs are involved in the second division.
But who will win the race in the end and take one of the first two places that qualify for direct promotion? HSV trainer Tim Walter sees Schalke and Werder Bremen “on paper” as favorites. Schalke’s coach Dimitrios Grammozis does not use the word ascent for the time being. “The 2nd division is brutal, intense, and there will be many games that are on the knife edge,” says the 43-year-old.
The Royal Blues rely on a goalscorer who knows how to do it: Simon Terodde. The now 33-year-old attacker has already been top scorer four times in the second division and is only twelve goals behind leader Dieter Schatzschneider (Hanover 96) in the eternal scorer list of the football club with 142 hits. In 2017 Terodde shot VfB Stuttgart into the Bundesliga, in 2019 1. FC Cologne. At HSV, however, this did not succeed last season. The HSV undertakes the new promotion attempt with coach Tim Walter. The coach, who was dismissed from VfB Stuttgart at the end of 2019, now sets the tone in Hamburg. The goals necessary for the Bundesliga return are to be provided by Robert Glatzel (from 2017 to 2019 at 1. FC Heidenheim), whom HSV brought from Cardiff for one million euros.
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In the past few years, teams like Arminia Bielefeld, VfL Bochum and Spielvereinigung Greuther Fürth have been promoted that many fans did not have on the bill. Also in the new round, outsiders like Karlsruher SC after a strong last season and 1. FC Heidenheim will look for their luck. In any case, the former professional soccer player Ansgar Brinkmann (Eintracht Frankfurt / Arminia Bielefeld) trusts the FCH to rise. “I think Werder will end up on top,” said Binkmann picture. “Likewise Heidenheim! Heidenheim is my secret favorite. “
33 games on free TV on Sport1
In the new second division season There are a number of top games on the program. Schalke and HSV will kick off this Friday (8.30 p.m.). The Hamburg city derby between HSV and St. Pauli will take place on the third match day (August 13), the north derby between Bremen and HSV on match day 7 (September 18). Werder will receive Schalke on matchday 14 (November 21).
The opening game Sat.1 broadcasts freely to receive between Schalke 04 and Hamburger SV. In addition, Sport1 will show a game live on free TV on a total of 33 match days, with the Saturday evening game at 8.30 p.m. All second division games can be seen on the pay TV broadcaster Sky.
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