With the contract extension behind him, Paderborn’s coach Lukas Kwasniok is looking forward to a real top game in the 2nd Bundesliga on Friday. In the duel with Darmstadt, however, Kwasniok has to do without his top scorer.
SC Paderborn will host SV Darmstadt 98 in the top game of the 2nd Bundesliga on Friday evening (6:30 p.m.).
Kwasniok extends contract until 2025
It’s the first game after for Kwasniok his contract extension. The club announced this on Thursday: The contract of the 41-year-old, who has been on the sidelines in Paderborn since summer 2021, was extended until 2025.
For the SCP, the main goal in the first game after the two-week break is to assert oneself in the top group of the second division. With two points behind leaders Hamburger SV, Ostwestfalen are in second place since the defeat against Greuther Fürth before the break. Before that, the SCP had been at the top of the table for over five weeks.
Paderborn has to do without a plate
Striker Felix Platte played a major role in the strong start to the season. The 26-year-old is the top scorer in the 2nd Bundesliga with six goals and four assists. Platte, however, is ailing and falls out in the clash against his former club.
On the other hand, Darmstadt can fall back on a top scorer in form in Phillip Tietz. The 25-year-old striker has scored two of his five goals in the last two league games. In addition, there were two goals in the last meeting with Paderborn on the last day of last season.
Duel of two top offensives
And his team got back on the road to success with a 2-0 win against 1. FC Nürnberg before the break. Coach Torsten Lieberknecht’s team previously drew three times.
However, the “lilies” have been unbeaten for eight games, only losing on the first day of the game against Jahn Regensburg. Lukas Kwasiok therefore sees a “tough chunk coming”, but also has a good impression of his team: “The boys are well recovered and were totally euphoric in the training sessions.”
Both teams are causing euphoria and a sensation this season, especially in attacking terms. With 25 goals, Paderborn has the most goals by far. They are followed by 1. FC Kaiserslautern (18) and then Darmstadt and Hanover (both 17). And despite the absence of the strongest offensive player of the season so far, all signs point to a top game with lots of goals.
