Rot-Weiss Essen are about to play their third third division match this season. And against Viktoria Köln, there could be some changes in the starting line-up.
In the 2-2 draw against MSV Duisburg, Christoph Dabrowski started with the same eleven as in the 1-5 loss against Spielvereinigung Elversberg. And it has to be said honestly: Not every player took his chance to make amends.
Dabrowski made five substitutions in Duisburg and brought Moritz Römling, Meiko Sponsel, Thomas Eisfeld, Simon Engelmann and Oguzhan Kefkir into the game from the bench. He also proved a lucky hand with his personnel changes. “As a coach, you always try to give an impulse. But the players also have to fill it with life. In Duisburg it was great to see how the impulse came from outside. The boys really turned things around on Friday,” praised the Rot-Weiss Essen coach.
It is quite possible that the 44-year-old football coach will make a few changes to the starting eleven on Tuesday evening (7 p.m., RevierSport live ticker) against Viktoria Köln.
It’s clear that the 3rd Division is new territory for some. We need patience. We have also taken that into account. We want to bring the boys up to this level.
Christoph Dabrowski
First and foremost, the full-backs Sandro Plechaty and Felix Herzenbruch did not find their top form against either Elversberg or Duisburg. The same goes for Cedric Harenbrock on the offensive. “My boys are very self-critical on the road and recognise the things they are doing wrong. They work hard to get better. It’s clear that for some of them the 3rd League is uncharted territory. We need patience. We have also taken that into account. We want to bring the boys up to this level,” says Dabrowski with regard to possible changes.
Meiko Sponsel (right-back), Moritz Römling on the left side of defence did their job well in Duisburg and are already digging in their heels. The same goes for Thomas Eisfeld, who replaced Harenbrock at half-time in Duisburg and gave the RWE game impetus. And, not to be forgotten, Simon Engelmann. The four-time Regionalliga top scorer proved that he can also do it in the 3rd Division and scored after his substitution. He also provided a lot of movement in the offensive. It remains to be seen what Dabrowski will do. But three of the four – Sponsel, Römling, Eisfeld, Engelmann – should have great chances to fight for valuable three points for RWE from the start against Viktoria Köln on Tuesday evening from 7pm.
“The guys who are at the back at the moment have to get themselves in a condition to help the team when they are needed,” Dabrowski stressed at the matchday conference on Monday. At any rate, the aforementioned quartet fulfils this criterion in Duisburg.
