Preparation mission accomplished

SV Elversberg have finished their preparations with two test games against TSG Hoffenheim and Viktoria Köln. SVE are launching their second division campaign in Magdeburg.

Even though coach Horst Steffen’s team lost 1:3 to TSG Hoffenheim, on paper their strongest opponent in this preparatory phase, this was ultimately a decent test match where SV Elversberg had some good moments and largely ensured a well-matched game. Nicolas Kristof started in goal for SVE against Hoffenheim, and was joined on the pitch at the start by Elias Baum, Florian Le Joncour, Robin Fellhauer, Semih Sahin and Freddy Schmahl alongside Lukas Pinckert, Paul Stock, Filimon Gerezgiher, Maurice Neubauer and Fisnik Asllani. Asllani was new to the team at this point, and his first training session with his new team was a match against his old one. After a set-piece goal conceded followed by another goal, Florian Le Joncour clawed one back with a header. After another counter-attack by the Bundesliga side to bring things to 1:3, SVE had other chances to score but the score remained 1:3 – ultimately a good test for SVE against a good opponent. 

The final test match was then against third-division team Viktoria Köln on Saturday in the URSAPHARM arena. During this trial run in their home stadium, the URSAPHARM arena on Kaiserlinde, the Saarland team failed to achieve more than a 1:1 (0:0) draw. The home team’s goal was scored from a penalty by Carlo Sickinger in the 68th minute. The visiting team also equalised with a penalty (88th minute). Horst Steffen was not entirely satisfied with this performance: ‘If we can’t manage to get the ball from A to B, then we are only playing one half of football’, Steffen said to the Saarbrücker Zeitung. His team appeared nervous and imprecise, constantly allowing Köln to switch things up. ‘It was a very good performance, we let very little through. We had even more goal opportunities in the first half’, Köln’s coach Olaf Janßen noted. However, initially their superior play went unrewarded. During the second half, the second-division team gained strength and took the lead, before a controversial penalty enabled their opponents to equalise. ‘Ultimately, this should really have been a 2:0 win for you. We have to accept the penalty equaliser, even though I doubt it really was one’, Horst Steffen said into the Saarländische Rundfunk microphone after the game. 

This 1:1 brings the summer preparations to a close. SV Elversberg won their first two test matches against Eintracht Trier (3:1) and first-division Luxembourg team Swift Hesperange (3:0), but then suffered a 0:1 defeat to Fortuna Sittard from the Netherlands’ Eredivisie league. They then put in a compelling performance against promoted Belgian first-division team KAS Eupen (4:1), whetting appetites for more. However, SVE remained without a win against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (1:3) and in their final match against Viktoria Köln (1:1). Nevertheless, the results are just numbers – as becomes clear every year on the first day of official play. SVE kick the new season off next weekend against 1. FC Magdeburg. The first home game in the URSAPHARM arena on Kaiserlinde will be followed a week later by a fantastic highlight, when SVE face relegated first-division team 1. FC Köln in Saarland.