VfB Homberg won 2:0 against Ratingen 04/19 in the Oberliga Niederrhein. A bitter setback for Ratingen in the promotion battle, but the sixth success in a row for Homberg.

The final score was 2:0 at Homberg’s PCC Stadium. VfB won through goals from Tim Ulrich (60′) and Nabil Jaouadi (90′) against Ratingen 04/19. A bitter setback for Ratingen, who have to let KFC Uerdingen go for the time being in the fight for promotion from the Oberliga Niederrhein.

For VfB Homberg, on the other hand, it was their sixth win in a row. Coach Stefan Janßen was delighted with three games and three wins in one week: “A perfect English week against three such strong opponents. I’m really impressed with my team to put in another performance like that. It was a coach’s game in the first half. Boring for the spectators, but we coaches knew what was happening.”

There really weren’t any highlights in the first half. Things got all the better after the restart, as Janßen also summed up: “It was a really good game in the second half. At first we were better in the game, then Ratingen turned on the pressure. We had an outstanding goalkeeper who made three great saves. We should have sealed the game earlier in the end. But my boys like drama, but then they pulled it off.”

Ratingen’s interim coach Frank Zilles, who had to cope with his first defeat in his second game as coach on the sideline, also paid tribute to Homberg keeper Kenneth Hersey: “I don’t think the pressure was too great. The Homberg team put everything into it. It was a fierce battle. Homberg gained the upper hand after half-time and we couldn’t avoid that. The goalkeeper played a role, he made two or three huge saves.”

The defeat means Ratingen slip to 4th place. Uerdingen are two points ahead with one less game played.

“The disappointment is naturally huge. But we didn’t just lose against Homberg. There were many games in which we dropped points. You can lose in Homberg,” said Zilles, looking at the table and feeling a little resigned.

He doesn’t want to sign that afterwards. After all, a direct clash against Uerdingen awaits on the next matchday (Sunday, May 12, 3 p.m.): “Nothing has been written off yet. As long as it’s possible, we haven’t written anything off yet. First of all, we’ll see what Uerdingen do in Essen. As long as there’s a theoretical chance, we’ll believe in it. It’s clear that it won’t be easy.”

Uerdingen have an English week ahead of them and play at ETB SW Essen on Wednesday (May 8, 7 p.m.). The game against Ratingen then awaits.

Zilles analyzed what needs to improve in the top duel: “First of all, we have to get better at looking for finishes. We had a lot of good shooting positions against Homberg, but nobody had the courage to finish. At some point, you just have to take the lead and then you can play the game in a completely different way. We didn’t manage that. “