After a year away, due to 1.FC Köln’s relegation, the Rhein Derby returned with Borussia Mönchengladbach hosting their rivals at Borussia Park.
Die Fohlen came into this game on the back of their first win of the season, as last weekend they beat St.Pauli 4-0, while Köln have been one of the surprise teams of the early stages of the Bundesliga season.
The early stages of the first half were a cagey affair, with Gladbach having the better of the chances, but as the game ticked towards half-time, die Fohlen won a penalty after a foul from Kristoffer Lund on Franck Honorat. However, Haris Tabakovic’s sport kick would be saved by Köln keeper Marvin Schwäbe, pushing the ball out for a corner.
From the resultant corner, Gladbach would open the scoring when ping ponging in the air allowed the ball to land at the feet of Philipp Sander, whose volley made it 1-0.
Despite changes at half-time, they made very little difference for Köln, as Gladbach continued to look like the team that wanted to win more.
The hosts would be awarded another penalty when Lund handled the ball in the box, and Kevin Diks was able to beat Schwäbe to make it 2-0. Then, die Fohlen would hit their rivals with another goal three minutes later when a counter was finished off by Tabakovic after the ball was squared by Franck Honorat.
As Gladbach’s win was all but secured, Köln managed to gain more control of the game and were awarded a penalty of their own in the 92nd minute, which Luca Waldschmidt converted to give Effzeh a lifeline, especially with 11 minutes of added time.
Gladbach continue their winning ways:
The win means that die Fohlen are out of the relegation zone and move into 12th as they win their second game in a row. It is a testament to the work that Eugen Polanski has done when it comes to hauling this team out of the hole that they found themselves in. It did get worse before it got better, and it still isn’t exactly pretty, but it is what Gladbach needed as they head in the right direction – upwards.
The players look rejuvenated. Once Tim Kleindienst returns, there will be a choice to make as to who is the starting number nine, as Tabakovic has six goals and two assists in nine games in the Bundesliga. The revival of Florian Neuhaus has previously been spoken about, while Philipp Sander, Franck Honorat and Rocco Reitz have improved greatly.
Do 1.FC Köln struggle in big games?:
There is no doubt that Ko4ln have been the surprise team of the season, and Said El Mala one of the surprise players. However, if you look at the teams they have played, and most importantly beaten, the only team in the top half is Hoffenheim.
Lukas Kwasniok’s football is definitely on the more attractive side, but they have struggled in big games, and while Gladbach may not be ‘big’ in terms of league position, this is the most important game of the season, and they lost (granted it was away from home) but considering their form compared to the hosts, they probably should of won.
Borussia Mönchengladbach:
Moritz Nicolas (6), Philipp Sander (6), Nico Elvedi (6), Kevin Diks (7), Joe Scally (6), Rocco Reitz (7), Yannik Engelhardt (6), Lukas Ullrich (6), Franck Honorat (6), Florian Neuhaus (6), Haris Tabakovic (7)
Others: Marvin Friedrich (5), Giovanni Reyna (5), Shuto Machino (5), Oscar Fraulo (-)
1.FC Köln:
Marvin Schwäbe (6), Joel Schmieda (5), Cenk Özkacar (5), Eric Martel (5), Jakub Kaminski (5), Isak Johannesson (6), Denis Huseinbasic (6), Kristoffer Lund (4), Florian Kainz (5), Said El Mala (5), Marius Bülter (5)
Others: Ragnar Ache (5), Sebastian Sebulonsen (5), Linton Maina (5), Gian-Luca Waldschmidt (5), Alessio Castro-Montes (-)
GGFN Player of the Match: Kevin Diks (7)
Via FotMob, the 29-year-old made 16 defensive contributions and won 80% of his ground duels, which played a key role in Gladbach winning the game as Köln were the more dominant side, especially in the later stages of the second half.
It also helped that Diks finally was able to score his first goal for the club. At Copenhagen, the Indonesian international was a regular penalty taker for the Danish side, so it is surprising that it took him so long to take the spot kicks for Gladbach.
GGFN | Jack Meenan
