The Bundesliga soccer team 1. FC Köln will face FC Bayern next Friday evening (from 8:30 p.m.). In the home game against the reigning German champions, the penultimate team in the table wants to finally turn the trend around with an inspiring performance.
In addition to their own footballing deficits, Cologne’s own ground in the RheinEnergieStadion at home has repeatedly stood in their way in recent weeks. The grass in the Cologne stadium was found to be far too slippery, especially since the rainy autumn days.
Will the people of Cologne finally get their lawn problem under control when the high-class technicians from Munich set up shop in the cathedral city?
Cologne head coach Steffen Baumgart, who had voiced loud and public criticism of the green in the RheinEnergieStadion in recent weeks, was at least tame again in the run-up to the twelfth Bundesliga matchday: “I’ve made the bad guy now. I hope that we can manage it . It’s raining in other stadiums too. That’s why I’m assuming that we’ll have a very, very good pitch on Friday because everyone will try hard. That’s the expectation.”
Stadium operator promises “best possible condition”
1. FC Cologne has only been able to win one of six home games in the current Bundesliga season and repeatedly had problems with stability on the ground in their own stadium, especially in the 1-1 draw against FC Augsburg.
Kölner Sportstätten GmbH, which owns and operates the 50,000-seat arena, made at least some kind of promise of quality to 1. FC Cologne and FC Bayern in advance: “We no longer comment on things relating to the pitch, but we can “We can of course guarantee that our team works almost around the clock to put the turf in the best possible condition,” Lukas Wachten, spokesman for Kölner Sportstätten GmbH, was quoted by “Bild”.
The last time Effzeh and FC Bayern met was on matchday 34 of the last Bundesliga season in Cologne. At that time, Munich only made it 2-1 in the 89th minute and thus made it clear that they had won the German championship.