What a weekend! Tired of goals and sensational actions. If the trend of the first four matchdays continues, we can look forward to a season of superlatives and a lot of excitement. Anyone who still looks longingly at other leagues can no longer be helped.
At the weekend, ex-Bayern board member Oliver Kahn posted photos from his current visit to Saudi Arabia. The former world-class keeper smiles alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mané, both of whom have been signed as new superstars and figureheads for the Saudi Pro League. Oliver Kahn was very interested in how this football experiment would continue in the future – and concluded his post with the words: “Now back in Germany”. All you can say is just in time. Otherwise Kahn would have missed a special weekend of spectacle.
Without further ado, one has to say right now: What the players in the first two German leagues are conjuring up on the pitch at the moment is giving football fans in the country a lot of joy. There are plenty of goals and sensational actions – and plenty of material for heated discussions. From Friday to Sunday, the 36 clubs showed that football is alive in Germany. If this trend continues for longer, we can look forward to a season of superlatives, lots of excitement and spectacle. Because it’s been a while since the two leagues gave fans so much fun.
Guirassy sets an incredible mark
For an incredible 56 years, for example, no player has started the season with eight goals after four games – Stuttgart’s Serhou Guirassy has now achieved it. It’s just an indication that this season is already outstanding. How exciting and thrilling the fight for the championship will probably be this season was already shown on Friday evening, when Bayer Leverkusen not only stood up to title holders Bayern Munich, but even brought them to the brink of defeat at times.
In this condition on the first four matchdays, at least Bayer 04 Leverkusen and RB Leipzig should stand up to the record champions this season. And who knows? If Serhou Guirassy stays fit, VfB Stuttgart could become the surprise team in the league. After the strenuous last few years, the club and team seem to have emerged from the crises in a strong position.
Many football fans had already suspected before the season that FC Heidenheim could be an enrichment for the first Bundesliga. The club from the east of Baden-Württemberg is refreshingly different – and thus forms an exciting contrast to the old top dogs in the league. Up in the Albstadion, other clubs will stumble this season than SV Werder Bremen, who put on a goal-rich spectacle with the team led by coach Frank Schmidt yesterday.
Adventurous things in Darmstadt
In a different way, SV Darmstadt 98 provided plenty of talk on Sunday. The Darmstadt team had their opponents Borussia Mönchengladbach firmly under control until the 49th minute – and were already leading 3-0. But then referee Timo Gerach intervened. His decision to send off Darmstadt’s Maglica and give Gladbach a penalty will certainly go down in the annals of the Bundesliga.
Because his reasoning after the end of the game – with the images of the scene in his head – was downright adventurous: “I could see that the Darmstadt player took the ball with him with a swiping movement. The question that follows from the punishable handball: Is it yellow or red? And the rule text clearly states that if the striker has control of the ball, it is a clear thwarting of the scoring opportunity and will be punished with a red card.” In the end, the Darmstadt team could be happy that they had at least partially saved the game with a draw. But the discussions about the VAR have received new and completely justified impetus with this decision.
Wild games in league two
Ben Redelings is a best-selling author and comedian from the Ruhr area.
His current book “60 Years of the Bundesliga. The Anniversary Album” is a modern classic from the publisher “The workshop”
He travels all over Germany with his football programs. Information & dates www.scudetto.de.
And the second league also made a big splash this weekend. Hannover 96 beat VfL Osnabrück 7-0, FC St. Pauli won the northern duel against Holstein Kiel 5-1 and Saturday evening was sweetened for football fans by the thrilling game between FC Schalke 04 and FC Magdeburg. The score was 4:3 for the Royal Blues at the end of a sometimes wild confrontation in the Arena Auf Schalke. Goals and stories on the assembly line – because the second Bundesliga is also alive these days.
And one thing should be clear to all football fans after just four match days: the money and the superstars may be in the foreground in other leagues – but the first two professional leagues in Germany currently offer great cinema in terms of spectacle. But we can be sure: Oliver Kahn will let us know in good time when football in Saudi Arabia has overtaken us at some point. Presumably exactly when he himself is no longer “back in Germany”.
2023-09-18 20:02:24
#Season #superlatives #satisfies #fans #longing
