Rot-Weiss Essen will host SV Waldhof Mannheim on Sunday. The signs before the game couldn’t be more different.

Rot-Weiss Essen, considered a candidate for relegation before the season, will face SV Waldhof Mannheim on Sunday, who were considered contenders for promotion before the start of the season.

However, after 14 match days in the 3rd division, the reality looks completely different – almost the opposite. RWE is in third place with 24 points and Waldhof Mannheim is in 16th place with 13 points. Essen is in a position to be promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga, Mannheim is in a relegation position.

But Essen’s coach Christoph Dabrowski, who can draw on a full squad except for Fabian Rüth (in rehab), Ekin Celebi and Thomas Eisfeld (both in training on the pitch), warns: “I’m not saying anything new when I emphasize that a third-division game is not easy. Mannheim are definitely better than their league position suggests. SV Waldhof have started the season with big ambitions. They also have a good team. They are good at switching the play. This is an opponent who will challenge us a lot. But, of course, with the self-confidence of the last few weeks, we naturally want to get our next win at Hafenstraße.”

Meanwhile, the Kurpfälzer have not won in the third division for six matches. Coach Rüdiger Rehm is already fighting for his job and cannot afford to lose in Essen.

I’ve known Jesaja for a long time, actually since he was in the U15s at Hannover. He was always part of the academy. I followed his progress for years. He is a very dynamic and straightforward player. Jesaja Herrmann has a lot of potential

Christoph Dabrowski on Jesaja Herrmann

Jesaja Herrmann is one of the young hopes of the Baden-Württemberg club. The 23-year-old, who is SVW’s top scorer with three goals and two assists, along with Kelvin Asare (one goal, four assists), almost ended up in Essen before the season. According to information from Forecasting, Herrmann was due to attend talks at the Hafenstraße stadium. These are said to have gone very well. However, according to our information, RWE hesitated for too long, causing the former German junior international to sign for Mannheim instead.

Dabrowski would not confirm that RWE was interested in Herrmann, but said: “I’ve known Jesaja for a long time, actually since he was in the U15s at Hannover. He was always part of the academy. I’ve followed his career for years. He’s a very dynamic and straightforward player. Jesaja Herrmann has a lot of potential.”

But RWE is also doing great without Herrmann. That’s why Dabrowski is naturally confident about Sunday. “Our team has enough solutions at hand to beat Mannheim and celebrate the next victory with our fans. That’s our clear goal for Sunday,” emphasizes Dabrowski.