Opposition Check: Karlsruher SC

That was almost twelve years ago now. Since then, Baden has experienced ups and downs – including the dramatic relegation against Hamburger SV, in which they narrowly failed to gain promotion to the Bundesliga. And the bitter relegation back to the 3rd league in 2017.

But since being promoted again in 2019, the KSC has been firmly part of the 2nd Bundesliga. Karlsruhe got off to a strong start in the current season: after the first nine matchdays, KSC was undefeated and was now second in the table. The Baden team also travel to Darmstadt for the upcoming game (07.03/6.30pm) with a lot of self-confidence. The main reason for this is the two most recent successes against 1. FC Magdeburg and 1. FC Köln. After 24 match days, the KSC is in ninth place – six points behind the direct promotion places.

Pep Guardiola once explained that it hardly makes sense to stay at a club for longer than three years. Either you have to replace the coach or replace the entire team. With this statement he alluded to his “biggest mistake”: the fourth year at FC Barcelona. Christian Eichner is now in his fifth season as head coach at KSC – and shows no signs of wanting to leave the club. One of the reasons for this is the constant change within the squad. “That’s one of the factors why I don’t wear out as quickly here as I might elsewhere,” explained Eichner. The Sinsheimer is not afraid of wear and tear anyway. On the contrary: he loves working with a different team every season. “I want to keep reinventing myself. There are small building blocks that may not seem so big to the outside world.”

“Back then, I slid into the head coaching job more or less out of nowhere, if you will,” Christian Eichner once told Sport1. The former professional footballer and mathematician has been working as a coach at Karlsruher SC since 2016. He began his career as an assistant coach for the U17s before working his way up to assistant coach for the professionals. From there, he initially went back to the U17s on an interim basis, this time as head coach, before the now 42-year-old suddenly found himself on the sidelines of the professional team in 2017 and took over the team for a week. Three years later, this scenario was repeated – and again it was Eichner who stepped in. In 2020, the former left-back finally took on permanent responsibility as head coach, which he still holds today.

Hardly anyone can fool Karlsruher SC in front of the goal. KSC has scored 44 goals so far this season. Together with SV Elversberg, the Baden team is in third place in the statistics of teams with the most goals in the 2nd Bundesliga. Only Hamburger SV (51) and 1. FC Magdeburg (52) scored more. Looking at Karlsruher SC’s 15 hits on the post or crossbar, there could have been significantly more goals…

“At the moment I see the centre of my life here,” said Marvin Wanitzek in an interview with SWR. The 31-year-old feels right at home in Karlsruhe – saying goodbye is currently not an option for him. Above all, the proximity to his family and his best friend, who lives right next door, make life in the city particularly worth living for the Bruchsaler. This is far beyond his big dream of the Bundesliga. Would Wanitzek have what it takes to play permanently in the first division? For sure. But the offensive player prefers to remain loyal to the KSC so far.

Wanitzek feels at home in Karlsruhe not only in the city, but also on the pitch. With an impressive 22 scorer points in 27 competitive games, he leads his team with impressive performances. He not only impresses in terms of sport, but also with his role as captain. After previously being co-captain alongside Jérôme Gondorf, he was officially named the new captain shortly before the start of the season. “I was extremely pleased that the captain’s armband was made official again a week before the start of the league – being able to lead the team of my hometown club onto the field means a lot to me,” said Wanitzek. These words alone show how much he identifies with the KSC.

He has been wearing the KSC jersey since 2017 – and during this time Wanitzek has also immortalised himself in history: with 66 goals, the number ten is now fifth on the club’s all-time top scorers list. He enjoys the highest reputation within the team. “He is an absolute guiding light for the team – on and off the pitch. “An extremely important player and a real anchor,” said teammate Leon Jensen, praising his captain.