Good start for SVE

Our Elv have enjoyed a strong start in the 2. Bundesliga: an initial 2:0 lead over Hannover 96 ultimately saw a 2:2 draw. Coach Horst Steffen was very satisfied, with plenty of respect shown by the team’s opponents.

Coach Horst Steffen was very satisfied with the SV Elversberg’s 2. Fußball-Bundesliga debut of 2:2 (2:1) against Hannover 96, but not completely happy. ‘I was mostly happy with the game’, he noted after the match on Saturday. ‘The first few minutes had a few too many errors, then we cleaned things up. We tried to play a bold game, which worked at some points.’

Nevertheless, the draw against the former top league team from Lower Saxony is a small reminder not to underestimate the new arrivals. After all, the visitors were even 2:0 up after goals by Marcel Correia (22nd minute) and Wahid Faghir (38th minute) before 96 were able to equalise via Cedric Teuchert (43rd minute penalty) and Nicolo Tresoldi (54th minute). ‘Elversberg played a really good game’, 96’s coach Stefan Leitl said. ‘We are delighted to have been able to turn this 0:2 into a 2:2’, Leitl explained after the game on Saturday. His team were lacking ‘the sharpness and grip they needed’. ‘We were not able to achieve what we actually set out to do’, Leitl noted, adding: ‘Fundamentally, I was not entirely happy with how we handled the ball during the game.’

The good game that SVE delivered is also evident from the words of Marcel Halstenberg and the reaction from the opposing team’s fans after the match. ‘We were expecting a different result’, returnee Marcel Halstenberg admitted during the ARD interview. The first half was difficult, we passed up too many chances in the 90 minutes, did not play offensively enough. Of course, one point in our first game is OK. But we want more.’ Some 96 fans clearly thought so – there were some whistles for the hosts after the match, showing that our Elv have made their mark in the league.