MSV Duisburg is gearing up for its next big match in the 3. Liga. Against TSV 1860 Munich, the team aims to bounce back from the 1-5 loss to Rostock. Here’s what the coach had to say ahead of the game.
MSV Duisburg got off to a disastrous start to the 3. Liga’s big match weeks with a 1-5 loss to Hansa Rostock. While the offensive play was certainly impressive, the defense once again revealed major weaknesses—not for the first time in the second half of the season. Even in the 1–6 loss to SV Wehen Wiesbaden, MSV looked anything but ready for promotion.
Coach Dietmar Hirsch likely had some strong words to say about this during the week. On the bright side for MSV: They now have another home game coming up. On Sunday (4:30 p.m.), the match against TSV 1860 Munich offers the chance for the much-needed turnaround before the international break. The team would like to enter this phase on a high note—and the prospects aren’t bad, since Duisburg remains undefeated at home.
However, Hirsch will have to do without key players. In addition to the injured forwards Dennis Borkowski and Maximilian Dittgen, Patrick Sussek is also suspended. It’s particularly disappointing: Sussek has already racked up an impressive 15 points this season.
It just does something to the guys when they play in front of their own fans. The players rave about this atmosphere
Dietmar Hirsch
Even with a full roster, the task would have been challenging, as the “Lions” are currently in good form. 1860 has been undefeated for six games, and they’ve lost only twice in their last eleven matches. Hirsch is accordingly on guard: “Munich has been very consistent and is having a strong second half of the season. They concede few goals and are strong on set pieces. They’re happy to let the opponent have the ball and transition very quickly when they have possession.”
That said, Hirsch hopes his team will bounce back, especially since he emphasizes that the players have expressed how much they enjoy playing at their home stadium: “It just does something to the guys when they play in front of their own fans. The players rave about that atmosphere. But you also have to say that we’ve conceded a lot at home lately.”
For example, against 1. FC Saarbrücken, when the final score was 4–2. Hirsch highlights the underlying problem: “In Rostock, we didn’t have possession until it was 0–1; too often, we’re not really getting into the tackles. We need to get back to being tough like we were in the Regionalliga, where teams didn’t really want to play against us. We play well with the ball, but we also need to get back to really wanting to defend.”