Strong at home, SV Waldhof Mannheim inflicted only the fourth defeat of the season on third-division leaders Elversberg: At the end of the 25th matchday, the Mannheim team won their home game 2-1 (0-1).
Julian Riedel (12th, own goal), Fridolin Wagner (71st) and Adrien Lebeau (72nd) were the goalscorers in Waldhof Mannheim’s acclaimed 2-1 win over leaders SV Elversberg. The Kurpfälzer turned the game around in front of 11,680 fans within 53 seconds. With the victory, Waldhof climbs to fifth place in the table and is back in the running for promotion. With 57 points, Elversberg remains confidently on the way up.
Waldhof Mannheim erratic, Elversberg scores
Second best home team against the best away team – that was the initial situation for the floodlit game in Mannheim’s Carl Benz Stadium. The hosts had to accept a setback even before the game, because top scorer Dominik Martinovic was absent due to flu. Coach Christian Neidhart let offensive man Marten Winkler play for him from the start. Adrian Malachowski and Adrien Lebeau also replaced Bentley Baxter Bahn (yellow card suspension) and Marc Schnatterer, who had been in the starting XI at the 0:4 in Dortmund. Guest coach Horst Steffen, on the other hand, made only one change: Carlo Sickinger took a seat on the bench again for Marcel Correia.
And the guests started the game with more control. Mannheim made a few mistakes in the build-up game and thus got themselves into trouble. In the ninth minute, SVW keeper Jan-Christoph Bartels had to thwart a big chance for the first time when he fended off a Nick Woltemade shot from ten meters with his foot. Only three minutes later Bartels was powerless too: Luca Dürholtz got through on the right flank, shot the ball in the direction of the Waldhof goal, where Julian Riedel maneuvered it into his own goal to make it 0:1 when he tried to defend himself.
Malachowski missed equalization before the break
After falling behind, the Waldhof had to shake briefly before venturing back towards the Elversberger Tor. Fridolin Wagner forced keeper Nicolas Kristof to make an initial save with a shot from 20 yards out (23′). Waldhöfer’s work against the ball also got better: Elversberg didn’t have as much time for a controlled build-up of play and was therefore unable to create any further chances.
The Waldhof established itself in half of the Saarlanders, but did not create any scoring chances for a long time due to its increasing superiority. Only shortly before the break did the chance to equalize: After a corner, Pascal Sohm’s header from close range failed to hit goalkeeper Kristof, Malachowski rebounded two meters wide of the left post. So it went into the break with a narrow 0:1 deficit.
Waldhof pushes, Waldhof meets, Waldhof celebrates
Both teams came out of the dressing room unchanged. Mannheim still had control of the game, but did not do enough with his superiority. In the 53rd minute, Winkler served Thomas Pledl, who was free in the penalty area, but whose shot from ten meters out was blocked and defused by Correia. Elversberg only put a few offensive accents, but was more busy disrupting the Waldhöfer urge phase. By skilfully moving the guests made the rooms narrow again and again, so that the SVW attack attempts fizzled out.
Twenty minutes before the end, the 53 seconds that decided the game: Fridolin Wagner headed a free kick from Rossipal unstoppably into the Elversberger Maschen to make it 1-1 (71st minute). And while the stadium announcer was still celebrating goal scorer Wagner, the Waldhof followed suit. Substitute Berkan Taz dribbled down the left into the penalty area, chipped the ball onto Lebeau, who was completely free, and scored the goal on the right to make it 2-1. game turned!
League leaders Elversberg then had exactly one big chance to equalize, because the guests fought courageously: The Saarlanders came back in front of the Mannheim goal in added time. Robin Fellhauer crossed to Ben Bobzien in the center, who took off directly. His shot went just inches wide of the left post. And then the game was over: to the great cheering of the Mannheim fans, referee Florian Badstübner blew the whistle for the hosts’ 2-1 victory.
