SG Wattenscheid 09 returned from the summer break with a 10-3 friendly win against Schwarz-Weiß Wattenscheid 08. The new offensive signings showed their potential.
SG Wattenscheid 09 returned from their summer break on Wednesday evening, and around 48 hours later, their first test match of the season was already on the schedule. At neighboring Schwarz-Weiß Wattenscheid 08, the offense, reinforced by top transfers, showed its potential, with the final score 10-3 (5-2) for SGW. Numerous new signings celebrated their first minutes in the “Nullneun” jersey.
“45 percent of the team are new players, so they need to find their feet first and learn the routines. We are an attacking team, so every opponent will have their chances, but I thought the goals we conceded were a bit too easy,” said head coach Christopher Pache, who was disappointed with the three goals conceded by the Landesliga side.
The 37-year-old was all the more pleased with the first performance of the new attacking line: “You have to score ten goals in your first test, that was good. When our offense plays quickly into depth, it’s effective. Once it gets rolling, we can really have some fun next season.”
Berkan Firat (two goals) and Robert Nnaji, both long-serving players from last season, scored for SGW, along with new signings Kevin Schacht, Finn Wortmann, and Ilias Anan, among others. This combination should lift Wattenscheid to the top of the table in the future.
Pache is convinced that the team has the right mix: “We’ve got a really great group together. You can see the fire in their eyes. They’ve got a lot of ambition, determination, and heart. For me, that’s the most important thing. Now the guys need to gel over the next few weeks. Once we’ve managed that, it’ll be really exciting.”
In contrast to the attack, which has been almost completely revamped, the traditional club’s defense has only received selective reinforcements so far. Nico Pulver, who according to Pache will only start training in two to three weeks due to a persistent injury, returnee Nils da Costa Pereira, and promising youngster Emir Hacioglu are planned for the outside positions.
The coach therefore still sees a need in central defense: “We are desperately looking to sign another center back. We are searching for a different type of player than Sero (Serhat Kacmaz, editor’s note) and Joey (Joey Gabriel), because they are very similar in their style of play.”
Trial player Mats Brämer, who is initially on board for a week and a half and plays in the position we are looking for, could fill this role, Pache revealed: “He has the game intelligence and breaks into the center with courageous balls. I really liked that, the potential is there. Let’s see how the week develops. Maybe we’ll have some opportunities to do something there.”