MSV Duisburg will kick off the new third league season at 1. FC Saarbrücken on Saturday (2 pm). RevierSport has put together a possible starting eleven for the opening game.
After the 4-0 defeat in the dress rehearsal in Paderborn, Torsten Ziegner said that he already had his starting eleven in mind. Unsurprisingly, the MSV Duisburg coach did not show his cards. Since the 45-year-old has played with two strikers in almost all of his preparatory games after Benjamin Girth’s recovery, the two-man line-up is a likely scenario at the Ludwigsparkstadion, but also a bold one for an away game at the second-placed team in the league.
According to our editors, the Zebras could start in a defensive 4-4-2 formation with two sixes: Müller – Feltscher, Mai, Senger, Mogultay – Bakalorz, Jander – Stoppelkamp, Ajani – Girth, Bouhaddouz.
In front of the number one seed Vincent Müller, Ziegner faces one of the most difficult decisions at right back. Rolf Feltscher is likely to have a narrow lead in the duel with Joshua Bitter. On the left side of defence, Baran Mogultay had already ousted Niklas Kölle from the starting eleven before the winter break. In central defence, there is no way around Sebastian Mai and Marvin Senger. Most recently, Tobias Fleckstein was also allowed to prove himself alongside the head of defence.
The double six belongs to Caspar Jander and Marvin Bakalorz. The homegrown player and the former Bundesliga player complement each other well, Jander likes to get involved up front. It remains to be seen whether Bakalorz will get his back problems under control by the weekend. Otherwise, Marlon Frey, Niclas Stierlin, Jonas Michelbrink or Marvin Knoll are available as alternatives.
Captain Moritz Stoppelkamp will certainly play in the offensive. Marvin Ajani could play on the second wing, as Kolja Pusch is more likely to play behind the top players and Alaa Bakir will have to postpone his comeback after missing training following a meniscus tear.
At the beginning of the preparation period, Benjamin Girth seemed to be the only striker in the centre of attack. The 30-year-old impressed right away after his transfer from Braunschweig, until a shoulder joint blowout put him out of action for three months. Aziz Bouhaddouz has fallen short of his expectations so far, scoring only two goals in the first half of the season. Four goals in preparation increase the Moroccan’s chances of starting.
It is quite possible that Ziegner will do without a striker in Saarbrücken and that the coach will instead trust another midfielder and go with the tried and tested 4-2-3-1 system. An additional option would be a 3-5-2 system with another centre-back. Either way, one of the most difficult away games of the entire season awaits the Meiderich side on Saturday in their first competitive match of 2023.