After six matchdays, 1. FC Kaan-Marienborn leads the Regionalliga West as unbeaten leaders. Nevertheless, coach Thorsten Nehrbauer remains humble.
The “Kaansinn” in the Regionalliga West continues. The promoted 1. FC Kaan-Marienborn extends the Regionalliga fairy tale by another stage and continues to mix up the league. After a 2-1 away win against FC Schalke 04’s U23, the league newcomer continues to lead the table ahead of Preußen Münster.
Even a Schalke team with four professionals was unable to stop the winning team’s run of six games without defeat. Thorsten Nehrbauer, coach of the Siegerländer, made no secret of the fact that he did not entirely approve of the use of the Schalke professionals: “I can’t do anything about it. And I don’t worry about things I can’t change. It’s clear that I personally don’t like the fact that something like that works and works. I don’t think I’m alone in that respect among coaches. Of course, you could see the quality in the boys who came from the top. But they were defeated by us as a team. “
We want to enjoy the momentum, we want to stay humble
Thorsten Nehrbauer
After five wins and a draw from the first six games, Kaan-Marienborn are greeting us from the top of the table for the moment. The team from the Siegerland has made an almost perfect start to the new season and has been able to pass the big favourites in the league such as Preußen Münster, SV Rödinghausen, Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, Wuppertaler SV and also Fortuna Köln. “The boys can be proud of the work they have done. I don’t think anyone in the Regionalliga West expected Kaan-Marienborn to be up there. But it’s just a snapshot. We want to enjoy the momentum, we know what we can do and where we belong. We want to remain humble,” Nehrbauer does not take off.
For the 44-year-old, all of the 16 points scored so far are a cushion against relegation: “Anything else would be presumptuous. We know very well that these are our points for staying in the relegation zone. I’ve told my boys that the sooner we get them, the nicer the job will be.”
Former RWE player Enzo Wirtz sees team unity as the main reason for the current wave of success: “No matter who makes a mistake. No matter where we play a bad pass. At the end of the day, everyone busts their ass and goes after it again and tries to get the ball back when someone else has lost it. Everyone is there for each other. That’s not just a phrase, that’s really how it is.”
The team from the Siegerland can continue to cause a sensation in the upcoming duel against Fortuna Köln (02.09, 19.30). Because “we’re going to the next top favourite, where we’re underdogs,” Nehrbauer knows.
