KFC Uerdingen won 1-0 at SSVg Velbert in the Oberliga Niederrhein – without the support of their own fans, who boycotted the game.
KFC Uerdingen won 1:0 in their away match at SSVg Velbert in the Oberliga Niederrhein. A success that was not to be expected and came about almost without support from their own fans.
The Ultras Krefeld only made the trip to Velbert in small numbers and with one banner in their luggage. The banner that the Ultras hung on the fence of the away block before the game began read: “No performance – No support.
And so it was. During the 90 minutes, not a single cheer could be heard from the away block. Only a few Krefelders gathered in the main stand and created a little atmosphere from time to time.
Not an easy situation for the players of KFC Uerdingen and also for interim coach Dmitry Voronov. However, the 37-year-old coped well with the situation because he had already been coach at Uerdingen at the beginning of the relegation season and had experienced a lot, as he revealed: “I also had to experience and deal with a lot during my time in the regional league. We knew exactly what to expect here, which is why we had a lot of talks with the players. The fans’ reaction was to be expected. I said it before the match, we have to win back the hearts of the fans and we have already achieved that with the victory against Velbert.”
Already after the final whistle in Velbert, it could be seen that the fans had mellowed. As they walked to the block, there was applause from the fans who had come along, but the mood of celebration was still absent.
Kadiata and Udegebe understand fans’ reaction
Captain Leonel Kadiata, however, believes that the support of the fans could soon be won back with such performances: “We have to work for the support. We have squandered it, I have to say that quite clearly. With the victory, we have now started to win back the fans. We have to bring that passion onto the pitch again and again, that’s what the fans want to see and if we can do that again and again like we did against Velbert, I think we’ll have the support back soon. “
In addition to Kadiata, second leading player Robin Udegbe also showed understanding towards the fans: “Of course it hurts, but it is also a reflection of what we have delivered recently. That’s why I think the reaction is understandable. Our task then is to convince the fans to support us. We’ve made a good first step towards that.”
The next step to win back the support of the fans can be taken on Wednesday (8pm) at Cronenberger SC, where the catch-up game of the 22nd matchday is scheduled.