SV Elversberg defeated despite two comebacks
SV Elversberg played a very good away game, but still had to admit a 2:3 defeat by Karlsruher SC. As annoying as this loss may be, their performance has nevertheless spurred them on for upcoming matches.
SV Elversberg played very well on Friday evening, but were unfortunately still defeated 2:3 by a strong Karlsruher SC. Although coach Horst Steffen’s team put in their best performance thus far this season, it was ultimately not enough to score any points. Nevertheless, Steffen is optimistic about the future and considers his team’s play to be a clear sign that they can hold their own in the second division. ‘Today was a very good performance in many areas, but an unlucky result. However, the most important thing for me is that with this performance and what lies ahead, we have a good second division team that can keep up in the long term’, Horst Steffen told the Saarbrücker Zeitung after the game. Despite the defeat, the coach was optimistic and fully confident in his team. Even so, the disappointment in this missed opportunity cannot be ignored. ‘It was a lively game, we came back from behind twice and it felt like we could achieve something. Ultimately, we were unlucky not to have come away with a single point from a good performance’, Steffen added.
Ultimately, we were unlucky not to have come away with a single point from a good performance
Whilst Steffen was positive about the match, sports director Ole Book appeared significantly more annoyed – and not entirely without reason. He was particularly unhappy about a contentious moment before the first goal conceded by Elversberg. A KSC player blocked Manuel Feil, preventing him from intervening. However, there was no whistle from the referee. ‘We were told before the season started that blocking would be punished. Apparently not for us. I do not understand why we are so perpetually penalised by VAR’, was Book’s criticism.
The other two goals conceded also left a bitter taste in Elversberg’s mouth, as they were partly due to errors made by 18-year-old new addition Elias Baum. Baum, who was visibly downcast after the game, was nevertheless immediately backed by coach Steffen: ‘I think that dealing with disappointment is part of Elias’s development. He is understandably disappointed, so he is being supported by everyone else.’
The game, in front of nearly 27,000 spectators in Karlsruhe’s BBBank Wildpark, began in promising form for SVE. The Elversberg players sprang out of the starting blocks and had the first major opportunity to take the lead in the early stages, thanks to Luca Schnellbacher and Semih Sahin. However, Schnellbacher – who was unable to get the ball to his colleague – self-critically noted: ‘I thought there was a player from the other team right behind me, and I had no time. We need to play that scenario better.’ Shortly after he did just that, and scored a well-deserved equaliser after KSC had taken the lead.
After falling behind again, Elversberg provided a perfect response in the form of Fisnik Asllani. But when KSC took the lead for the third time thanks to Andrin Hunziker, the Saarland team ran out of ways to respond. KSC’s coach Christian Eichner appeared relieved after the match: ‘We have to take it easy in these games’, Eichner noted, although adding ‘but I can really appreciate having seven points after three games. There have been a lot of changes to our squad, so it is always important to be successful.’
Despite the defeat, one thing remains clear: SV Elversberg have shown that they can not only hold their own, but also cause a stir in the second division. The task now is to reinforce this in their upcoming games and earn just reward for their efforts. Ole Book remained open to the prospect of a new signing to help with this in the future: ‘We are fundamentally very happy with the lineup. If we consistently play with two strikers, it would be no bad thing to have four centre forwards.’
In Karlsruhe, SV Elversberg played with the striker duo of Luca Schnellbacher and Fisnik Asllani. The third and final striker is 19-year-old Mohammad Mahmoud, who initially took up a position on the bench, but was substituted in alongside new additions Filimon Gerezgiher and Lukas Petkov during the game. The potential of all the new players was clear to see, but as coach Horst Steffen emphasised, it will take a few weeks for the team to be able to fulfil its full potential on the pitch. New arrival Asllani echoed this way of thinking: ‘This is entirely normal, as I also told Muhammed (Damar) after the game. On our first day of play, I felt like I was playing with an entirely new team. But then I realised that it was improving as each week passed’, he explained, coming to the defence of all of SVE’s new signings.
The next test comes on Saturday at 1 p.m., when SVE are welcoming relegated Bundesliga team SV Darmstadt 98 to their home URSAPHARM Arena on Kaiserlinde – perhaps with a new player to swell their ranks, but whatever happens with a team that could still pose a threat to their somewhat faltering opponents.