Rot-Weiss Essen will play away at TSV 1860 Munich on Saturday. Once again, Felix Wienand will be on the bench. Yet he could have been in the lineup.

It was April 26, 2025, when Uwe Koschinat decided that, with Rot-Weiss Essen’s league survival already secured, Felix Wienand should be given a chance in goal.

The number two, who sits behind Jakob Golz in the RWE goal, was supposed to show what he was capable of and warm up for the Lower Rhine Cup final against MSV Duisburg. Koschinat and his goalkeeper coach, Manuel Lenz, faced a lot of criticism for this decision.

But in the end, the coaches were proven right. After a shaky start in the 0–3 loss to Saarbrücken, the critics of this decision felt vindicated, but Wienand went on to deliver from then on. So much so that during the summer break, several third-division and regional-league clubs, such as 1. FC Bocholt, vied for the services of the 23-year-old—whose contract runs through June 30, 2028. RWE put a stop to any loan or permanent transfer.

The Red-and-Whites’ management did the same this winter of 2026, when an inquiry from SSV Jahn Regensburg landed at RWE headquarters. Forecasting reported.

We have a clear hierarchy, but we’ve also given Felix plenty of opportunities to show what he’s capable of. He’s delivered, and it’s only natural that others have taken notice.

Uwe Koschinat

Ahead of the match against TSV 1860 Munich, Coach Koschinat once again explained the situation in RWE’s goal.

“First and foremost, the blame in this situation lies with Manuel Lenz and me. Because Germany wouldn’t even know how outstanding this young man is if we hadn’t given him the opportunity last year to actually play such a long stretch of games. We knew we had an outstanding goalkeeper, and now more clubs know it too. That’s the business. But we deliberately signed two strong goalkeepers with the idea of actually being able to achieve our goals. And that certainly includes needing two very good goalkeepers. That’s important for our day-to-day work and also gives the team a lot of confidence,” said the coach.

The 54-year-old added regarding the outside interest in his backup goalkeeper: “Everything else is none of my concern. My concern is that we have two damn good goalkeepers we can rely on. We also have a clear hierarchy, but we’ve given Felix plenty of opportunities to show what he’s capable of. He’s delivered, and it’s only natural that others have taken notice.”