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After a devastating defeat to Borussia Dortmund Sept. 22, 1. FCK hosted Hannover 96 Sunday at Fritz Walter Stadium in Kaiserslautern. And after an action packed match, the Red Devils lost to Hannover 1-0.
Although 1. FCK lost the match, it is impossible to disregard the manner in which they played. The team as a whole played well. They did take the ball, maneuver past the defense and managed to spend ample time in the goal zone making Hannover goalie Florian Fromlowitz work hard to defend the zone.
Marco Kurz maintained the line-up from the previous game with Tobias Sippel performing acrobatics to defend the goal; Srdjan Lakic and Erwin Hoffer were strikers and continuously led the team in the attack; Jiri Bilek and Christian Tiffert were midfielders; while Martin Amedick, Florian Dick, Rodnei and Leon Jessen served as defenders.
The trainer for Hannover, Mirko Slomka, established his line-up with Fromlowitz as goalkeeper; Steven Cherundolo, Karim Haggui, Emanuel Pogatetz, Konstantin Rausch and Christian Schulz as defenders; Sergio Pinto, Manuel Schmiedebach and Moritz Stoppelkamp as midfielders; and Mohammed Abdellaoue and Didier Ya Konan as strikers.
Throughout the match, the Red Devils constantly entered the goal zone. They would position themselves, overcome the defense but then miss the goal by mere inches. Dick had various opportunities where he successfully maneuvered through his opponents, got in position and missed the mark.
Jessen swept through the defense and stood face to face with Fromlowitz, but missed. Rodnei also had a few close calls. Lakic continuously made his way to the strike zone but never scored.
Although Hannover collected three yellow cards (from Fromlowitz, Pogatetz and Schulz), at times it seemed the referee was somewhat blind to their mishaps. But the Red Devils’ fans never diminished their chanting, music and overall motivation in support of their team. From start to finish, the fans were fully engaged.
1. FCK now stands at No. 11 in the ranking.
On Saturday, 1. FCK will travel to Hamburg.
The next home match takes place at 3:30 p.m. Oct. 17, when the Red Devils will face off against Eintracht Frankfurt. Tickets are available online at www.fck.de or at the stadium.
