22nd matchday
Sinsheim (dpa) – Anyone who spontaneously bought a jersey from Benjamin Hübner in the TSG 1899 Hoffenheim fan shop that evening after the game got the flocking for free.
The stadium announcer referred to the special offer on the occasion of the celebrated match winner just seconds after the 2-0 (1-0) victory of the Kraichgau team in the Bundesliga against Arminia Bielefeld. The goal scorer for the opening goal himself was of course “super happy”.
Hübner celebrated after a long injury break
Hoffenheim’s captain paved the way for the turning point after four defeats in a row and was the celebrated man. The 32-year-old, who had been injured for a long time, scored in the 22nd minute and was finally done, but beaming in front of the DAZN microphone. “I think if we played our counterattacks better, it could have been even better. But we’re all super happy for today,” he said after his 100th competitive game for TSG.
For a long time it was doubtful that Hübner would do this at all. He was absent for more than a year and a half due to an ankle injury, only made his comeback in January and last week extended his contract until June 30, 2023 – which wasn’t such a big issue for him: “I was more concerned with that I’ll get fit again. I want to play as much as possible now and recharge my batteries so that I can go 90 minutes again.”
In the race for international places
In front of 10,000 spectators in Sinsheim, the strong Georginio Rutter scored for Hoffenheim, who are in sixth place again in the race for international places. His team made a “really good game”, praised coach Sebastian Hoeneß.
In the case of Bielefeld, on the other hand, the series of six games without defeat broke. 24 shots on goal by the attacking opponent spoke for themselves. Head coach Frank Kramer complained about “extremely many ball losses” and summed up with frustration: “It just didn’t work out today.”