23,000 spectators are expected for the RWE match at Arminia Bielefeld. There’s a lot at stake – for both teams.

Arminia Bielefeld are five points clear of the first relegation spot ahead of their home match in the 3rd division (Sunday, 4:30 pm) against Rot-Weiss Essen. If Arminia had survived injury time in Ingolstadt unscathed, they would already have seven points.

So Arminia must score against RWE to put their minds at ease. Bielefeld do not have fond memories of the first leg. They equalized through Louis Oppie shortly before the end – but Ron Berlinski headed in the 2:1 for Essen in the 90th minute.

Now the home game is about more than revenge. Bielefeld must avoid the drop, it would be the third relegation in a row. RWE have not yet written off third place.

It will be correspondingly emotional on the Alm. Up to 23,000 spectators are expected, with 3,000 supporters traveling from Essen. Ahead of the 90 minutes, Bielefeld coach Michel Kniat emphasized: “There’s a lot at stake for both teams: Essen want to get a sniff at the top, we already know the results of the competition on Sunday evening. I’m curious to see who will impose their game.”

What RWE will offer in Bielefeld’s living room is clear to Kniat: “We expect them to run at us again and again. We need solutions for that, and we’ve already worked on them during the week. Against the ball, we always adapt a bit to the opponent, with the ball we will play our game. “

Against the ball we always adapt a little to the opponent, with the ball we will play our game through

Michel Kniat

And the Bielefeld team have already proven one thing. They can handle pressure, winning their last home game against MSV Duisburg 2:0. Kniat: “We had a long week of training, which we split into two parts: At the beginning of the week, the focus was on high intensity, and in the second half of the week we prepared for Essen. We’ll train in the stadium again on Saturday.”

In terms of personnel, the coach will only be without Noah Joel Sarenren Bazee, while four players are under threat of yellow cards, but that doesn’t matter to Kniat: “The next game is always the most important, there’s no tactics. The boys always give it their all – regardless of the next opponent. We have a broad squad for that. “