SSVg Velbert strengthens its offense in the relegation battle with a new signing from promotion contenders Fortuna Cologne. That made the Lions’ recent 1-0 win against Wuppertaler SV all the more important. And now there is another glimmer of hope in the relegation battle. This time, however, it comes not in the form of three points, but of an offensive player. Nicolas Westerhoff is transferring from league leaders Fortuna Cologne to bottom-of-the-table Velbert.

It is a loan that is set to last until the end of the season. “Nico is someone who creates presence up front and stabilizes our attacks. He takes responsibility, works against the ball and brings a mixture of strength, power and pace to Velbert,” said coach Bogdan Komorowski about his new option in attacking midfield.

Westerhoff has been playing for Fortuna since the U15s, with a one-year break. In the Regionalliga, he has made six appearances (one goal) for the Cologne-based club. Velbert coach Bogdan Komorowski coached Westerhoff for a time in the U23s, where the attacking player made 89 appearances (19 goals, 11 assists) for Fortuna in the Mittelrheinliga. He added another 27 games (four goals) for Bergisch Gladbach.

Westerhoff’s first team training session will take place next Monday, February 2. Incidentally, Velbert will not be playing in the Regionalliga West this weekend.

The basement battle between SSVg Velbert and VfL Bochum’s U21 team cannot take place. Velbert announced: “Due to the current weather conditions, the city has closed the sports field. The home game scheduled for Saturday cannot therefore be played. A new date will be announced as soon as it has been set.”

VfL Bochum II has 13 points, two more than Velbert. If SSVg really wants to get back into the fight to stay up, they absolutely must win the match against Bochum. SC Wiedenbrück stands between the two teams in the table.