Third division team Rot-Weiss Essen put in a questionable performance against SC Verl (0:5) – already the second in a row. Comment.

In soccer, things can sometimes go extremely fast – in both directions. On October 1, Rot-Weiss Essen defeated third division leaders Dynamo Dresden 3:1 and turned the packed Hafenstraße into a madhouse. The team was rightly celebrated after the final whistle for a passionate performance.

On that Saturday, just six days after the aforementioned Dresden coup, the mood at Hafenstrasse had turned 180 degrees. What had happened? First of all, RWE had conceded a 4-0 defeat in Unterhaching during the week. Nevertheless, the team was sent off with applause; it still had enough credit from the game against Dresden. But what followed on Saturday against SC Verl was the last straw.

RWE was outplayed in its own stadium by a third-division team from the lower midfield of the table and was literally dismantled 5-0. For the first time this season, the mood also changed.

There were already whistles at halftime, when the score was “only” 1:0 for the Sportclub. The reason for this was not the result, but the lethargic style of play of the Essen team: no tempo, no ideas, no penetrating power. At this point, the spectators had no idea that the worst was yet to come.

In the second half, everything was missing. Partly embarrassing defensive lapses and a lack of commitment led to four goals conceded in just 20 minutes. There was no sign of a comeback.

The team has finally squandered its credit with the last two games, and is now in debt. Because at Hafenstrasse, the virtues of strength in duels, willingness to run, aggressiveness and commitment are in demand. If the team brings these virtues onto the pitch and loses, it will be cheered up because the spectators have a good sense of this. If these basics are not called upon – as in Unterhaching and against Verl – they are rightly criticized.

Dabrowski did not have a lucky hand

But head coach Christoph Dabrowski was also in the draw for this defeat. He relied on Moussa Doumbouya up front in the center of attack, and Ron Berlinski had to take a seat on the bench in his place. Berlinski would have been predestined for the high-risk build-up play of his former club as an intense run-on – and he had also performed well in the last two home games against Regensburg and Dresden.

Doumbouya, on the other hand, looked completely lost up front, had no connection to the game and could not put the Verler under pressure at all. The tactic of completely leaving the field to the strong Sportclub in the build-up to the game went thoroughly wrong.

In addition, the changes came much too late. Berlinski and Leonardo Vonic were only substituted when the game was already decided 0:3. Aaron Manu, who made his third league debut in the second half in place of the injured Felix Bastians, was completely out of sorts and had a disastrous day.

The team was primarily responsible for this memorable defeat, of course, but so was coach Dabrowski, who was praised for his tactical approach against Dresden.

RWE must get its act together quickly or it will be really uncomfortable

Once again, it became clear that Rot-Weiss Essen’s offense is simply too harmless. Only nine goals in ten games speak a clear language. It was not without reason that ex-goal scorer Simon Engelmann was celebrated with chants during the second half.

The crowd favorite had scored 72 goals in 117 games for RWE and could not be replaced on an equal footing. One gets the impression that the Essen team simply lacks the resources as soon as they fall behind and have to invest more in the game. If the defense, which has been strong lately, is so out of sorts twice, it will be difficult for RWE to score at all in the league.

The fact is that the players, regardless of the lack of penetrating power in the offense or the tactical alignment, should not put on such an anemic performance at Hafenstraße again. Otherwise it threatens to become really uncomfortable.

We can only hope that the team learns its lessons from the debacle – and that Felix Götze and Vinko Sapina return soon. The fact that the two key players cannot be replaced and that the squad simply lacks quality across the board became clear on Saturday…