SSVg Velbert had started its planned comeback in the Regionalliga West with great enthusiasm. The minutes before and after halftime against Sportfreunde Lotte were a bitter disappointment.
The Regionalliga West catch-up game was a duel at the bottom of the table. While Sportfreunde Lotte were able to secure their place in the middle of the table with a 3-0 win at SSVg Velbert, the air is getting very thin for Velbert. “We started this week of training with great enthusiasm and had big plans,” Velbert coach Bogdan Komorowski revealed after the game. “We were happy to be able to play. The game started well, we had our moments. With a little luck, we could have taken the lead, but unfortunately we missed that opportunity.”
The truth is that Lotte didn’t allow much for long stretches of the game. Only Robin Hilger had an excellent scoring opportunity, but he shot a Lotte player in the face from close range (25′). Then came the turning point of the game. Right-back Ismael Remmo was shown two yellow cards for unnecessary fouls on the sideline and was sent off in the 40th minute. Before the break, Shkrep Stublla scored the 1-0 for the visitors (45+2).
Kept up well, paid the price for being a man down
“We wanted to keep the game open for as long as possible, the 0-1 should stay on the scoreboard so that we could launch a final offensive. We didn’t succeed,“ said the coach, seeing his plans go up in smoke right after halftime. In the 49th minute, it was Ben Klefisch who scored the decisive 2-0 goal. ”Even though the winter break was short, there was already a certain euphoria,” said captain Felix Herzenbruch. “We got off to a good start, but it’s the same old story. Individual mistakes, two yellow cards, the 0-1 before halftime – a long ball, we’re actually playing two against two, and then the ball is in the net. Really bitter. Then we don’t get a clear penalty, the referee doesn’t blow the whistle, it was a bad day.”
At the end of the day, we deserved to win. Even with eleven against eleven, we had more control of the game.
Fabian Lübbers
Visiting coach Fabian Lübbers was much happier. “At the end of the day, we deserved to win. Even with eleven against eleven, we had more control of the game. We didn’t allow them many chances and created a few ourselves. The red card then played into our hands. It was very, very good that we were able to score the 1-0 with our next attack. We wanted to remain patient, then quickly scored the 2-0. Things got a little trickier again with the corners. The game was decided at the latest with the 3-0.”
The action continues next weekend. Sportfreunde Lotte will host SV Rödinghausen on Saturday (January 24). Kickoff at the Stadion am Lotter Kreuz is at 2 p.m. At the same time, SSVg Velbert will play another game in the relegation battle. They will face Wuppertaler SV at the Stadion am Zoo.