Some have already been written off, others were hardly endangered and suddenly in the middle of it, like others are about to stay in the class: In the Bundesliga relegation battle, there were six teams remaining before the end of the season – with very different starting locations.
| team | Goalkeeper difference | Dot |
|---|---|---|
13. 1899 Hoffenheim | -15 | 25 |
14. Union Berlin | -17 | 23 |
15. FC St. Pauli | -11 | 21 |
16. VfL Bochum | -24 | 17 |
17. Holstein Kiel | -24 | 16 |
18. FC Heidenheim | -23 | 15 |
Talent infusion Hoffenheim will probably save with the financial injection
Better than currently in table position 13, TSG Hoffenheim was last after the 2nd matchday. A few weeks ago at the end of January, TSG slipped to the relegation rank, just three points from the end of the table. In a breathtakingly chaotic season with various personnel reduction at the management level, the descent of the Kraichgauer seemed more realistic than it has not been for a long time. But after the approximately 50 million euros, which were spent on summer transfers such as Adam Hlozek and Alexander Prass, the TSG was even able to add updated in winter and signed striker Gift Orban from Lyon, top talent Bazoumana Traoré took out for the wing and lending central defender Leo Ostigard from Stade Rennes.
This possibility of a generous talent infusion with the financial injection is something that clearly distinguishes the Hoffenheimer from the other remaining relegation candidates. And in contrast to many of the summer transfers, Orban and Norway’s national player Ostigard in particular lit directly and may also have been a wish player of coach Christian Ilzer, who took over the team in November. Most recently, the TSG won against Bremen and Bochum and played a tie in between against Stuttgart. Ostigard was in the starting eleven in all three games, Orban has scored four times in the last six games. Eight points are the lead in 16th place, on Sunday it goes against the last from Heidenheim, which has won exactly one point in the league from the last seven games. If the individually strongly occupied Hoffenheim, which now also seems to accept the idea of ”Ilzer football”, should win this game as expected, the relegation is in principle certain.
Union Berlin – but no upward trend under Baumgart
On the 21st matchday, Union Berlin had just won 4-0 against Hoffenheim, previously Leipzig wrested one point, it seemed as if the “coaching effect” that Bo Svenssons had hoped for by Steffen Baumgart had now arrived with a bit of delay. The relegation ranks were nine points away. Since then, however, no further points have been added – the goal difference from the games against Mönchengladbach, Dortmund and Holstein Kiel is 1: 9.
The Iron also disappointed all along the line and Baumgart’s point cut is now only 0.78. At least he was at 1.19 under Svensson. Above all, the 0: 1 against Holstein Kiel let all alarm bells ring. The Kielers are again on the upper and even if the distance in 16th place is still six points: The upcoming opponents of the Unioners are Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayern Munich, SC Freiburg, VfL Wolfsburg, Bayer Leverkusen and VfB Stuttgart. In view of the latest services, hardly any more than one or two points can be predicted. In the first half of the season there were exactly those two in this series of games. It is no longer an unrealistic scenario that the iron will slide to one of the last three ranks in the coming weeks. Whether you would pull the coaching line again in the club probably also depends on the playful development. In any case, the program with Bochum, Bremen, Heidenheim and Augsburg looks a little friendlier.
FC St. Pauli – someone has to score a goal
Since Morgan Guilavogui was injured against FC Augsburg on the 20th matchday, FC St. Pauli has not scored a goal. Guilavogui had always got better and got up to the top scorer of the Kiezkicker with five goals. Since even the fourth best defensive series, which was “only”, could not hold zero in any of the following four games, the seven points have melted in 16 ranked fourth place. After the start of the season, coach Alexander Blessin did it, the “Fabian Hürzeler Game”, which was still very integrated in the squad, with which there was no stability in the Bundesliga due to the increased opponent quality to convert to a defensive, running-intensive and disciplined variety.
Morgan Guilavogui from FC St. Pauli in action
That worked well for a long time, but if no gate wants to fall at the front and the fifth-men aluminum hits of the Bundesliga come, it will be difficult to stay in the league. If you argue the 18 hit goals for the entire season, you end up at 25.5. With 25 goals, no team has reached 15th or better in the past ten years, at 26 it succeeded exactly once – Arminia Bielefeld saved himself very thinly in 2020/21. On the 25th matchday, St. Pauli meets VfL Wolfsburg, when they kept the zero in the first leg – nevertheless the Hamburgers should primarily hope for their own goals, which would give some boost again for the rest of the season.
VfL Bochum – Is the trend slowed down now?
Everything could have looked so good: VfL Bochum builds the series of three unbeaten games in a row to four against relegation competitor TSG Hoffenheim and in the same week at the green table is awarded for the game against Union Berlin. The team of Dieter Hecking is the strongest team in the basement, has the momentum and cloth feeling 15th. But it didn’t matter. Timo Horn, just chosen as the new number one, failed at a rather harmless end of Tom Bischof, Hoffenheim won 1-0 and the Bochumers still have four points behind in 15th place.
On the 13th matchday there were still nine points – the VfL chase is remarkable, no question, but the left Big Points against Hoffenheim pain. Because now the next opponents are called Bayern Munich, Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayer Leverkusen, VfB Stuttgart – the thesis that the momentum of the Bochumer could now be slowed down in this series does not require much imagination.
Holstein Kiel – Light is still burning in the north
If Holstein Kiel had lost against Union Berlin last week, the forecast would look much darker. But the storks just won 1-0 – only for the second time this season that they stayed without conceding, the red lantern gave the 1. FC Heidenheim and can suddenly take hope again. Because when it comes to the remaining program, the Kielers have a decisive advantage over many competitors: neither the Bavarians, nor Leverkusen, nor Frankfurt are on the schedule.
Three of the four season wins come from the opponent combination, which the storks are still expecting – if you can repeat this, this can definitely be enough for 16th place in this “snail race”. Against VfB Stuttgart, however, the grapes hang up again for the eleven of Marcel Rapp at the weekend before there is a directional away game at 1. FC Heidenheim. If both games are lost, the international break may be the last “sensible” time to think again about an impulse on the coaching bench.
Can the calm in the area save the Heidenheimers again?
The fact that the 1. FC Heidenheim exchanges its trainer in the relegation battle for a saving impulse seems as likely as a shot penalty from Harry Kane. Nevertheless, the upcoming two games are absolutely groundbreaking at the Brenz: Hoffenheim and Kiel are called the opponents, who in no way want to leave in the race for relegation. The team of Frank Schmidt recently remained eight league games in a row without a win, but the relegation place is still within reach.
“If we go on like this, it will be damn difficult,” analyzed Schmidt after the clear 0: 3 bankruptcy against Borussia Mönchengladbach. A pound with which the bottom of the table can grow: the coaching question will hardly ask itself publicly – calm in the area can be the tongue on the scales in the race for relegation.