Bundesliga soccer team Darmstadt 98 has been waiting for a win for 16 games, the promoted team won their last three points in the first half of the season at FC Augsburg – now that same opponent is traveling to the bottom of the table at Böllenfalltor. “For us, the explosiveness of this game is that we absolutely want to win it,” said coach Torsten Lieberknecht before the important home game on Saturday (3:30 p.m./Sky). The turnaround should finally succeed there.
Lieberknecht emphasized that his team has the feeling that they are “close to it”: “We are performing well – even against teams in good form like Stuttgart or now Bremen. But perhaps we need a better performance and even more intensity to get the reward .”
In terms of personnel, the coach definitely cannot rely on Marvin Mehlem. The midfielder suffered a broken fibula last weekend against Werder (1-1), and the 26-year-old was out with the same injury from December to February.
At least Mehlem does not have to undergo an operation, as initially assumed. “This was the result of further medical examinations that were carried out over the course of the week,” the Lilies announced on Thursday. Mehlem is being treated “conservatively,” Lieberknecht added: “I don’t dare guess how long the downtime will be.”