Alemannia Aachen will host 1. FC Köln II on Saturday. Coach Heiner Backhaus is worried about goal scorer Marc Brasnic.

They started the season with great ambitions – and after eight matchdays they are already nine points behind the promotion places. This is not what the Alemannia Aachen management had in mind.

Coach Heiner Backhaus is still unbeaten after two games in charge. But he has not yet been able to reverse the trend with the 0-0 draw against bottom side Fortuna Düsseldorf II that followed the debut win against Rödinghausen.

The next opportunity to do so is on Saturday: the second team of 1. FC Köln will be guests on the Tivoli (2 p.m., RS-Liveticker). “We need total alertness in terms of duel toughness. That is the key to success in a game like this,” Backhaus explains the plan in a media round. He warns: “If we are not wide awake, especially after losing the ball, it will quickly go into our depth.”

Because the opponent from Cologne is very strong in the game, has a good switching game going forward and, above all, brings an “extreme pace”, analyses the 41-year-old. He describes the FC talents, who recently conceded their first defeat but are in sixth place after a good start overall, as the strongest opponent in Backhaus’ tenure so far. “They are rightly so well placed in the table. “

Against the cathedral cities, Backhaus is once again hoping for the fans factor. Around 11,000 supporters are expected at the spectator leader this Saturday. “We need the atmosphere behind us to rise above. We will have to in order to beat them.”

After the nil draw in Düsseldorf, the 41-year-old had criticised his team for their performance in the first half. However, he praised them for the second 45 minutes. In the end, it was the lack of chances that denied the victory. “Judged by that, we have to win the game.”

What could help on the way to more effectiveness: a return of Marc Brasnic. With four goals, the summer addition is the best goal scorer. Against Düsseldorf, the attacker was scheduled for the starting eleven, but had to drop out at short notice. Backhaus hopes that Brasnic will be fit in time: “He would be an important player for such a hot game.” According to the coach, there was also a question mark behind Sascha Marquet on Thursday.