Ghent or Copenhagen are waiting
©IMAGO
1. FC Heidenheim at least freed themselves from the negative vortex with a draw, but missed out on a direct place in the round of 16 in the European Cup. With the 1:1 (1:0) against FC St. Gallen, coach Frank Schmidt’s crisis team achieved a conciliatory end to the league phase in the Conference League. It was no longer enough for a direct jump into the top eight.
In the last home game of Heidenheim’s remarkable football year, the Ostalb club was on course for the round of 16 at halftime thanks to Norman Theuerkauf’s lead (30th minute). However, the Heidenheimers also had to rely on the right results from their opponents and had to accept the equalizer in the second half from Augsburg’s Jozo Stanic (77th). That cost them any chance of avoiding the playoffs.
On Friday (1 p.m.) there will be a draw to see who FCH will fight for in the second round to make it to the round of 16. The opponent is then either KAA Gent from Belgium or FC Copenhagen from Denmark. The round will be played with a return leg on February 13th and 20th. Unlike the Europa League and the Champions League, the league phase of the Conference League ends after just six match days. The Heidenheim team had already secured participation in the playoffs before their appearance against St. Gallen.
Heidenheim stops losing streak and is unlucky at the post
After seven competitive defeats in a row, the draw was at least balm for the soul before the immensely important duel in the Bundesliga. The 16th place hopes to win on Sunday. from coach Schmidt to important points at the bottom of the table, VfL Bochum.
A week after the “non-performance” (Schmidt) and the 1:3 at Istanbul Basaksehir, the hosts controlled the game from the start in the constant rain. With a lot of possession, they pushed the Swiss into their half in front of 15,000 fans.
After half an hour, something notable emerged: the fast Sirlord Conteh on the right wing was blocked in his first attempt. His second cross reached left-back Theuerkauf, who shot it unchallenged from five meters.
The guests, coached by former Augsburg Bundesliga coach Enrico Maaßen, got into the game better after the break. The Swiss put Heidenheim’s defense to the test more than in the first half. High-flyer Paul Wanner failed to add to the goal for Heidenheim five minutes before the goal when he hit the post. This took revenge a little later with the equalizer with a header from a corner.