What does it take to be successful in the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor against SV Elversberg on Saturday afternoon (08.02/1pm)? What does Florian Kohfeldt expect for a duel? And what does the head coach of SV Darmstadt 98 say specifically about his team's offensive play? He provided the answers at the press conference on Friday (February 7). We have summarised the most important Kohfeldt statements for you.
Personnel Update: Paul Will, Matthias Bader, Christoph Zimmermann, Fabian Holland and Kai Klefisch as well as Othmane El Idrissi are out. Tobias Kempe and Matej Maglica are also missing due to illness. The appearances of Fabian Nürnberger and Fraser Hornby, who was unable to train fully this week, are still open.
I don’t think either team has a confidence problem. Both teams have a dominant and playful approach. So I don’t think it will be a fighting game. Both teams want to play forward in every situation, but that hasn’t always worked for both of them in the last few weeks. Elversberg is one of the teams that perhaps plays the gaps most consistently and wants to play from the back to the front most consistently. The SVE is a team that wants to get the ball back quickly. I therefore expect an open game. As a fan, I would have high hopes of seeing an attractive game on Saturday.
We are not happy with the last three weeks. The results just weren’t what we wanted to achieve. We also didn’t create the number of chances we expected from ourselves. Nevertheless, we have a good team structure and a very good basis as a team. It’s now about getting that last flow again. This means not thinking when making the final decision, but simply doing it. We are working on that. On the other hand, the basic structure with the ball and the work against the ball are also positive things from the last few weeks. I see a lot of factors that give us a high probability of being successful again at the weekend and in the next few weeks. The team is very keen to win again.
I see the expectations of Isac more as praise. He was out for eight to nine weeks. Accordingly, we must be patient. After all, we want to have something from him by the end of the season. In the last few weeks we haven’t created the number of chances we’re used to. I still have great confidence in all the players in our squad. Oscar Vilhelmsson, for example, coped physically well with the game in Nuremberg. The probability that he will start again is very high. I don’t want to put the pressure just on Isac. He is certainly an important piece of the puzzle for us. But our problem at the moment in creating scoring chances lies more in the determination from the spaces in between – initiating situations ourselves from these spaces. Of course, Isac helps because he binds opponents up front. But to blame everything solely on him and his absence in the last few weeks would be too much.
It’s not an attitude issue. Sometimes we want to make it too perfect. Sometimes it doesn’t matter what it looks like, both offensively and defensively. Kaiserslautern was our last outstanding game. There, for example, we had twelve to 15 great chances. But the team has to learn that it won’t be like this every time. We just have to take the simple thing – no matter how the ball goes in. In the last few weeks we have also received far too few standards, even though they are always dangerous. We had a corner against Nürnberg, but that’s not enough.
The transfer speaks for our scouting. Meldin Dreskovic is a classic scouting transfer in a positive sense. We have created a clear profile of what we want. The data and the personal development level were right. And we trust him to be able to play in the 2nd Bundesliga. We see great potential for development – especially in playing with the ball. He is a very athletic guy who is very aggressive in duels. He is healthy, fully fit and had very good performance tests. He will be in the squad on Saturday.
SV Darmstadt 98 invites all its members to come to the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor on November 1st, 2026, starting at 11:30am. Together, we aim to once again create the largest team photo in our club’s history—with the professional players in the front and the entire Lilies family behind them.
On Sunday (Oct 18th), SV Darmstadt 98 will visit Karlsruher SC. The side from Baden differs from the Lilies in several key respects. Furthermore, the match will see SV 98 cross paths with a former player once again. Find out here about other connections between the two clubs, as well as some particularly interesting statistics ahead of the encounter.
On Tuesday evening (October 13th), the SilberLilien took part in SV Darmstadt 98’s Stolperstein tour for the first time. Along the approximately six-kilometre route, the participants made several stops to learn more about the fates of Jewish club members who were persecuted and driven out during the Holocaust.
From new grassroots sports offerings and a look back at the club's history to birthdays and the latest updates from the media briefing—there is plenty to report from SV Darmstadt 98 again this week. In "Lilien Across the Board," we round up the news, insights, and stories from life at the club.
Tickets for the home match against 1. FC Heidenheim on November 22nd are available for purchase now.
SV Darmstadt 98's U21 team proved their mettle at home against KSV Hessen Kassel II in the Hessenliga on Sunday (Oct. 11th). After a convincing 90-minute performance, the Young Lilies secured another three points, finishing with a decisive 4–0 victory that lifts them to sixth place in the standings.
The Lilies overturned an early deficit to celebrate a 3–1 home victory against Energie Cottbus—a win that boosts confidence and confirms the progress being made. Read our analysis to find out why there is still work to be done and what positives SV 98 takes away from the match.
This season, too, Lilien fans will be doubly rewarded for every home goal scored by SV Darmstadt 98. In addition to the joy and excitement of the goals, the team's supporters will receive 98 litres of Krombacher Pils for every home goal scored by Darmstadt at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor.
After the international break, Darmstadt 98 returned to the Bölle with a home win! Against Energie Cottbus, SV Darmstadt 98 put on a spirited performance in front of their home crowd and rewarded themselves with three points after an intense match. We've compiled the post-match reactions for you here:
Despite falling behind, Darmstadt secured their second consecutive home win! Darmstadt defeated Energie Cottbus 3-1 (1-1). The home side equalised after conceding an early goal in the four-minute period through Weißhaupt before halftime. Vukotic headed his team into the lead in the second half, before Lührs sealed the victory with the third goal. This home win brings Darmstadt's season total to seven points.
Homegame at Böllenfalltor (10/10, 1pm): Florian Kohfeldt has made two changes to his starting XI compared to the away match in Wolfsburg three weeks ago. Richter and Mikelbrencis come into the starting lineup for Sickinger (calf issues) and Lannert (illness).
On Saturday afternoon (October 10th, 1pm), SV 98 hosts Energie Cottbus at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor for Matchday 7. What do the two head coaches have to say ahead of kick-off? Who is officiating the match, and where can you follow the action live? As always, we have compiled all the key information regarding the game against Cottbus in our "Matchday Guide" feature.