Matchday 29: Helpless Hertha still at the bottom of the table: “Just not enough”

29th matchday
Helpless Hertha still at the bottom of the table: “Just not enough”

The malice came from thousands of Bremen throats. “Second league, Hertha is there,” chanted the Werder fans who had traveled in droves in the second half. A forecast that seems almost without alternative after the performance of the capital club at 2: 4 in the sold-out Berlin Olympic Stadium.

“I’m someone who can always talk a lot, who always has answers, but right now it’s very difficult to summarize. It’s just not enough what we showed in the first half,” said Kevin-Prince Boateng, the leader himself.

The tender confidence that existed in view of the sold-out stadium and the return of rescue-experienced coach Pal Dardai at the bottom of the table fizzled out on Saturday in the 6th minute. Marvin Ducksch scored the first of his three goals. After losing the ball in midfield, Hertha’s Lucas Tousart was on the ground. None of his teammates approached Jens Stage or Ducksch with any consistency.

“The game starts, Dodi has a huge chance, we don’t score. We still have an opportunity. In return, a goal. After that, the team was blocked,” said Dardai, who returned and saved Hertha from relegation in 2015 and 2021 , but could reach its limits this time. The team struggles under pressure. “We urgently need to do something to solve this blockage,” said the 47-year-old.

Ducksch handles Hertha single-handedly

Only: Time is getting tighter and the gap to the relegation place is getting bigger. To top it all off, next weekend we are also going to FC Bayern Munich (3.30 p.m. / DAZN). “If you take something positive: We haven’t been relegated yet. We still have important games at home. We now have to move even faster, closer together,” said Boateng.

The blockade that Dardai and Boateng spoke of was clearly visible. The big scenery suddenly became a mortgage. Simple passes did not arrive. The duel behavior was sometimes reminiscent of escort protection. It was 4-0 after two more Ducksch goals (27th and 51st minute) and one from ex-Herthan Mitchell Weiser (63rd). Hertha’s goals from Jessic Ngankam (68′) and Dodi Lukebakio (78′, penalty kick) came too late. It remained unclear whether they were due more to Bremen’s negligence or Berlin’s rebellion.

Even before the game, Hertha fans expressed love and a banner that read: “Finally tear yourselves apart for Hertha BSC!”. Whistles at the break and a lot of resignation at the end. “We need the fans. I know it’s very difficult. I’m a Hertha fan myself, it hurts me too. I would whistle too, I think. But if we love Hertha the way we say it, we have to try it,” said Boateng. But he also admitted: “After today I’m a bit without energy.”

Green and White Party; 25,000 Bremeners in the Olympic Stadium

The luck Dardai hoped for before the game, which the Berliners have been missing for months, was also on the opponent’s side on Saturday. “The opponent’s first chance wasn’t possible today, as was the case in the last few weeks. Our chance was just in there and then the game went our way,” said Werder coach Ole Werner, who was happy that his team was finally rewarded for a good performance.

With 35 points, Werder shouldn’t have anything to do with relegation this season. The proclaimed green and white party in Berlin – up to 25,000 people from Bremen are said to have traveled – was a complete success. It was an extraordinary setting, said Werner. “When you see how much support we had here today, it’s something that sticks in your mind, and it also carried us a bit.”

You could almost forget that Werder’s top scorer Niclas Füllkrug (16 goals) closed his calf again shortly before the game. But Ducksch was just there and now has eleven goals himself. “He played an outstanding game. He took responsibility and went ahead. You really saw how he put his heart into it and took the boys with him,” praised professional football manager Clemens Fritz. “It was awesome, it was awesome,” Ducksch said precisely, just like on the pitch.

dpa