Floodlights, nerve and two goals – Elversberg turn Dresden match around
SV Elversberg fell behind early on in front of 30,000 spectators in the Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion – but still managed to secure a win. Vincent Wagner’s team showed patience, quality and strong nerve to beat Dynamo Dresden 2:1. This marks their latest victory in a top Saturday evening match – and sends a clear message in the battle for promotion.
Floodlit matches are a very particular beast. From SV Elversberg’s perspective, this one in Dresden began with a sucker punch – and ended with a bang. After a 3:1 win in their top match in Kaiserslautern two weeks before, Vincent Wagner’s team fought back from behind against SG Dynamo Dresden to take three points back to Saarland. These points are vital in a tight division – and they highlight how stable this team has now become.
Wagner had to manage without injured Jan Gyamerah, returned Lasse Günther and Felix Keidel to the squad, and placed Amara Condé in the centre right from the start. Winter new arrival Immanuël Pherai also celebrated his debut in the SVE jersey after being substituted on in the second half.
The match began with a clear plan. Elversberg sought to control play, up the pressure early on, and calm the stadium. In the fourth minute, Lukas Petkov gained an opportunity following a long pass by Lukasz Poreba but fired the ball too centrally towards Dynamo keeper Tim Schreiber. This was the first hint of what was to come.
But Dresden responded – in powerful form. Time and again, they managed to put pressure on the ball. In the 12th minute, the ball passed via Hauptmann and Bobzien to Alexander Rossipal, whose left-footed shot sailed unstoppably into the right corner. ‘The 1:0 was also a great goal, he slammed it savagely into the corner’, Wagner later said. Dynamo took advantage of their first clear opportunity – and had the support of the stadium.
The home team remained bold. The stadium celebrated once again in the 24th minute when Jason Ceka scored – but it was disallowed as offside. Dresden upped the intensity with aggressive pressing and disciplined defence. ‘Dresden are now pressing exceptionally well. They were already good at it in the first half of the season, but now their intensity is fantastic’, Wagner said approvingly.
It took Elversberg a moment to get back on track. Dynamo were the more dominant team at this stage. However, even before half-time, it became clear that Elversberg were regaining control. Poreba narrowly missed out in equalising after preparatory work by Mickelson and Mokwa, and a long-distance shot by Petkov was blocked. The away team were back. Before the match, Dynamo’s keeper Tim Schreiber described this as ‘the best first half I have ever seen us play’. And yet, the score was just 1:0.
Things looked rather different after the change of ends. Elversberg upped the pressure, fought to push deep earlier on, and won more deflected balls. Keidel hit the outside of the net in the 49th minute then Petkov missed from close range. The away team were picking up the pace.
The equaliser came in the 58th minute. A perfect long-distance shot by Rohr, then Mickelson broke through on the left to just inside the penalty area and slotted the ball passed Schreiber to make it 1:1. This was his first official goal for SVE. Celebrations were short lived. Petkov seized the ball and brought it to the centre. Elversberg wanted more. Dresden were now starting to lose dominance. Patrick Helmes later provided expert analysis on RTL Nitro: ‘They played a really fantastic first half but still ended up losing’. The core issue, in his view: ‘Perhaps they used up too much energy. In the second half in particular, they struggled to secure the ball and enable their teammates to push forward. This allowed Elversberg to turn the match around.’
The goal to secure the lead came in the 78th minute. Günther was initially foiled by Schreiber and the ball flew off towards the penalty spot – where Petkov was waiting to fire the rebound powerfully into the bottom left corner of the net. 2:1 to Elversberg. A match turned around with patience and consistency.
However, the win was not yet secured. Dresden threw everything into attacking. In the 83rd minute, Petkov cleared the ball from the line against Daferner – a rescue effort that was at least as vital as his goal. Wagner later openly said: ‘We were the lucky winners in this fantastic stadium. This win was not undeserved, but it was fortunate. If we had conceded that late equaliser, we still couldn’t complain.’ And Petkov? He said to Sky that he felt clearing the ball away was the more important achievement: ‘Emotionally, I think that clearing the ball away was much more important.’ It would have been difficult to recover from this setback. But that was still not the end.
We were the lucky winners in this fantastic stadium. This win was not undeserved, but it was fortunate.
SVE manager Vincent Wagner
Nicolas Kristof had to make two emergency saves in stoppage time. He cleared the ball at the last minute against Lemmer and Herrmann – two reflexes that safeguarded the win. ‘We were lucky. The fans are always on fire. Ultimately, we were fortunate against an opponent who are now on top form’, Wagner said.
Dynamo coach Thomas Stamm was particularly irritated about the period after half-time. ‘In the second half, we stopped being able to apply the necessary level of pressure, which meant our opponents could repeatedly break free. Elversberg were effective in a way that we were not at this point. And that is what you need to win points against a very, very good team.’ He added: ‘If you know the patterns and sequences they play, then ultimately we would have needed to defend better.’ But he did have something positive to take away from the match: ‘We can be happy that at points, we were able to play on a par with or even better than a team like this.’ Vincent Wagner also had some words for their opponents after the final whistle: ‘I wish the Dresden team all the best in the fight to stay in the division. If you continue playing as you have during recent away matches, then you will definitely be successful.’
Wagner also sought to put the scale of the win in perspective during interviews. Elversberg temporarily moved up to second place but were down to third by the end of the match day following Schalke’s win and Paderborn’s draw. However, the manager remained as calm as usual. ‘I, too, always dream of being promoted. I also dream of getting up every morning. Last year, I had the pleasure of being promoted with a great team. It was incredibly fun. But we are still as far from that as the earth is from the sun.’ What was much more important to him was ‘the way we played football’. And he said about the division: ‘The division is incredibly tight. During the winter break, you might have thought that the top teams would pull away – there were two or three with an average above two points. But now you can see that Darmstadt have 42 points after 22 matches, an average well below two – and that is excellent, because it is enough to be at the top of the table. That highlights how incredibly close the division is.’
The division is incredibly tight.
SVE manager Vincent Wagner
The division is tight – Helmes praised Elversberg’s appeal and described this as one of the secrets to success in the second division: ‘What is interesting about them is that although they perhaps did not play their best game today, they still offered calm and appeal. And this self-confidence that they exude is what really matters.’ He noted that Elversberg look like ‘a top team’.
Four points in the previous four matches had recently slowed their momentum somewhat. This win in Dresden puts SVE back in the race – as they remained true to themselves and radiated calm in a heated atmosphere. Things continue on Kaiserlinde on Saturday when Eintracht Braunschweig will be visiting the URSAPHARM Arena. The division remains close and the table is tight. However, Elversberg showed in Dresden that they can hold their own even in a heated away setting.