Borussia Mönchengladbach is in the no man’s land of the Bundesliga table before the end of the season. But VfL doesn’t want to sit back and relax, because anything can still happen.
“We will fight for every place in the table, every point is important” – what Borussia Mönchengladbach coach Daniel Farke said before the game against Bremen on Friday sounds like a common slogan in professional football, at first glance does not correspond to the situation in the Bundesliga Bundesliga teams from the Lower Rhine. The “foals” are currently in tenth place, ten points away from safe sixth place in the European Cup. There are just as many down to the first direct relegation zone.
Three games without a goal
A sluggishness could quickly creep in – the Gladbachers have already seen that in the last few games. The 4-0 loss in Mainz was followed by a passable 0-0 against Freiburg, only to lose again without a word to Leipzig. It should work better again against Werder Bremen – and the team should get a “threesome” again.
The construction sites are diverse: seven goals conceded in three games rankled those responsible, as did the missing hits in attack. Especially there, Borussia is actually excellently cast: Vice world champion Marcus Thuram or DFB selection player Jonas Hofmann are just the best-known names of a well-manned offensive.
Farke demands dominance
Farke demands a dominant style of play from the team against Bremen: “We have to show that we want three points and play at home.” Mönchengladbach saw how dominance works in the first leg: Bremen’s Mönchengladbach shot 5-1 out of the stadium.
“Half a year later, a lot has happened. Nevertheless, we showed a few situations from the first leg. Werder’s style of play has hardly changed,” explained Farke. In addition, his men are motivated to make up for this bankruptcy.
Omlin back in goal
At least Borussia was able to close one construction site: against Bremen, the team can once again rely on first-choice goalkeeper Jonas Omlin. The last injured Swiss will be back in the starting XI on Friday. “If he can take part in the final training session as usual, he’s scheduled for the game,” said Farke.
Substitute keeper Jan Olschowsky is also back in team training. A relief after the Gladbachers had trained without a professional goalkeeper for a while.
Winner could squint towards Europe
The duel against Werder – like Gladbach currently with 30 points – could also point the way. Who can possibly attack the places for international business again? Seventh place could be enough for this one and both teams are “only” six points behind seventh-placed Mainz.
At the same time, in the event of a defeat and the corresponding results, the loser would have to look back towards Keller – but without any real danger. Despite being ten against eleven in the table, you can definitely agree with Farkes’ phrase at second glance: Every point counts.
