Mission Accomplished: Progress in the Analysis

Matej Maglica’s „squandered goal“ in the 34th minute. That was the charming term Luca Marseiler used in the mixed zone after the final whistle to describe the Darmstadt center-back’s goal. Following a corner, several players from both the Blue and Green-Whites poked around for the ball. It finally fell to Maglica, who fired it over the line from close range. It wasn’t a pretty goal, but it was an important one. The goal, so close to halftime, secured the game.

Fraser Hornby’s goal after 73 minutes was beautifully played out and finished, and equally important, giving them a temporary two-goal lead and thus opening the door to progression. Following a buttery-smooth cross from substitute Clemens Riedel, the Lilien striker rose in the air to place the ball in the opponent’s net. „We scored both goals at the right time,“ praised Marseiler. Shortly before halftime, then just before the start of the final quarter of an hour: wide awake and consistent at the right moments. That was the Lilies in the Lohmühle Stadium.

Mandatory task accomplished. „I have only one goal on Saturday: reaching the second round of the DFB Cup!“ Florian Kohfeldt emphasised at the press conference before the match last Thursday (August 14th). In short, after the Lilies‘ 2-1 victory at VfB Lübeck: Goal achieved! Because in the DFB Cup, as already mentioned in the introduction to our analysis, it’s all about winning and advancing. It was clear to all Darmstadt players even before the match that this isn’t a given in the first round of the cup, even against lower-league opponents. And the other matches of the competition this cup weekend also demonstrated this. „It was a tough job,“ explained Kai Klefisch after the final whistle of an intense cup match, adding: „It was all about winning the game today. And we won. That’s why we’re happy to have advanced to the next round.“

Cup basics brought to the pitch. The 8,682 spectators at the Lohmühle got what they came to the stadium for on this Saturday evening: a cup battle. The 90 minutes against the regional league team were incredibly intense and physical. „A huge compliment to the opponent for maintaining this intensity for so long,“ said Kohfeldt at the post-match press conference, addressing VfB Lübeck, even though the northern Germans overshot the mark in terms of toughness in one or two scenes, especially towards the end of the match. „In the cup, it’s part of the game to fight, grit your teeth, and simply try to win the game,“ Marseiler summarised. SV Darmstadt 98 did just that. The team accepted the fight, took their opponent seriously from the start, and brought enormous intensity to the pitch. The 63 percent win rate of duels showed that they wanted to leave no doubt as to who would leave the pitch victorious in Lübeck. Even though the Lilies certainly didn’t have a great day on Saturday evening (more on that below), they played the game with maturity. Or, as Kohfeldt put it: „We didn’t put on a brilliant, but confident performance.“

The away support in Schleswig-Holstein. This, too, should not go unmentioned at this point. A good 600 kilometers separate the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor in Darmstadt from the Stadion an der Lohmühle in Lübeck. And over 1,300 Lilien fans made their way to the Hanseatic city over the weekend to loudly support their team in a packed away section and work together to ensure their progress in the DFB Cup. Florian Kohfeldt expressed his pride at the press conference before the match when he learned of the number of blue and white fans traveling with him. „This shows that there is interest in the Lilies and that the bond between fans and team is completely intact – that’s very important to me, and I’m very happy about it,“ said the SV 98 head coach.

The goal conceded. From the category: Can happen, but shouldn’t happen. Marseiler therefore also described the goal conceded in the first minute of stoppage time as „unnecessary.“ The resulting close scoreline created a perceived tension in the Lohmühle stadium. But the truth is that the regional league team had no further chances to score after their goal and didn’t pose a threat in front of the Lilien goal again. In any case, Darmstadt showed tremendous concentration and composure defensively throughout the entire game. „We didn’t let anything slip until we conceded. That’s why it was a deserved win overall,“ said Marseiler.

Not the best of teams. It certainly wasn’t a brilliant day for the Lilies in terms of football. A similar formulation was used by Florian Kohfeldt, Luca Marseiler, and Kai Klefisch in their statements about the match. While Darmstadt played maturely and confidently, they didn’t shine. „We lacked the necessary precision in the final third, and our attacking runs weren’t there,“ complained the aforementioned player in his analysis of the match. This led to the South Hesse side often playing around Lübeck’s penalty area, without finding a certain depth in their attacks.

To be honest, that’s precisely the art of football. VfB defended with all their might, and accordingly, with many players in the box. Finding the few gaps there? Difficult. And yet, the Lilies continued to spot them over and over again over the 90 minutes. Marseiler and Richter had several good chances in the first half, and SV 98 could have added more goals in the second. Especially at the start of the season, it has to be acknowledged that not everything is going perfectly for the Lilies, despite three consecutive competitive wins. Therefore, according to Kohfeldt, the key is to „keep working hard!“ Next Sunday (August 24th at 1:30pm), Hertha BSC will be visiting the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor.