SV Darmstadt 98 is dominating the second Bundesliga and is now anticipating their DFB Cup matchup against Mönchengladbach under the lights. Or, in the words of President Rüdiger Fritsch, the “cherry on top of the cake.”
Even if they aren’t interested in discussing it, second-place Darmstadt 98 is anticipating a preview of what the upcoming season would be like if they get promoted: a packed house, excellent opponents, floodlights, and a lot of attention.
After a few successful weeks in the second division, the Lilien will play Borussia Mönchengladbach on Tuesday night (8.45 p.m., live on the first) and want to make a splash in the DFB Cup.
Coach Torsten Lieberknecht remarked on Monday, “We’re playing against a quality team with exceptional individual players. It should be enjoyable for my squad to be able to battle with men like them.”
And in the evening’s home game, Lilien President Rüdiger Fritsch added! The coach remarked, “The cup game is the icing on top of a great run we’re experiencing right now.
Thoughts from 2013
People in southern Hesse are skilled at confusing Gladbach residents. In the first round of the competition in 2013, the Darmstadt squad from the third tier eliminated the favourites. Fritsch remembered the game that Darmstadt won on penalties: “It was Gladbach’s first competitive game and we booted so many balls into the fans that it was 0-0 in the end. And then it happened.”
Naturally, the signage on Tuesday are quite different. The head of Lilien wouldn’t object to the same outcome: “If it works the same way, then that’s how it should be,” Fritsch stated with a smile.
Run the first lap as a warm-up
On the big cup night, striker Magnus Warming is unable to contribute. Warming tore his syndesmosis ligament, and Lieberknecht stated, “We are now determining if he requires surgery. He will miss the remainder of the first half of the season.” In each of the season’s first twelve games in the second division, the Dane had been brought on as a substitute.
In addition to not playing against Gladbach, veteran Klaus Gjasula, forward Mathias Honsak, midfielder Fabian Schnellhardt, and backup goalkeeper Steve Kroll—who is now in corona quarantine—are all absent. André Leipold, a striker, is questionable due to a patellar tendon issue.
