After a 2-2 draw in the clash against SV Rödinghausen, also in poor form, 1. FC Köln II remains in a results crisis. Coach Mark Zimmermann nevertheless remains confident.

Despite a spirited and, for large parts, very respectable performance, the U21s of 1. FC Köln remain one of the problem children of the Regionalliga West.

With the 2-2 draw against Rödinghausen, coach Zimmermann’s team is now winless in eight games.

However, the Cologne coach was encouraged by the performance: “We played a very good game. The first half was one of the best in recent weeks. We were very efficient and deserved to take the lead. The team was at its limit and sold itself really dearly.”

The coach sees the problems in minor lack of concentration against a strong opponent. The lead was squandered through “individual mistakes”. But the intensity was just as good as the attitude. “We just have to wait for it, for the three-pointer. Against Rödinghausen, we were incredibly unlucky at the back with the missed penalty. Of course we have to get one, but at the moment we have to take what we get. If we keep going like this, we’ll eventually win.”

The young Cologne team must continue to work hard, said the coach. They have to keep looking for chances to take something countable. “Rödinghausen, for example, is also in a “results crisis”, but their team is very experienced. We have a lot of young players who have to deal with something like that for the first time. That’s what we’re strong for. We don’t surrender, we put everything into it. In the first half of the season we lost 0:5 against Rödinghausen, now we’ve got a point. You always have to put things into perspective. We definitely came close against a good opponent,” explained Zimmermann after the game.

Looking ahead to the next match, Zimmermann speaks of “another very good opponent”. The Cologne team will play the second team of the S04 (2 December, 2 p.m.). After two difficult months, they finally want to break the spell and win for the first time since the beginning of October. With a “performance like the one against Rödinghausen coupled with a bit of luck”, this is possible, according to Zimmermann.