Bochum. VfL Bochum and Fortuna Düsseldorf are fighting for a place in the Bundesliga in the relegation round. The first leg was a clear success. Read the ticker.
As unexpected as VfL Bochum slipped into the relegation round on matchday 34, they now have to face second division representative Fortuna Düsseldorf. And the second division team is going into the relegation round with confidence: Coach Daniel Thioune’s team beat Bochum 3-0 (1-0).
VfL Bochum – Fortuna Düsseldorf: The relegation first leg can be read in the ticker
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Next bombshell at VfL Bochum
The next bombshell at VfL Bochum came before kick-off: The Bundesliga club had its long-time captain Anthony Losilla (38) initially on the bench. The leader, who has been a regular since 2014, is only sitting on the bench – “for sporting reasons,” VfL officials explained to this editorial team.
On Tuesday, Losilla was critical of the dropping of long-time goalkeeper Manuel Riemann, with whom he is friends. But this is not the reason for his role as reserve in the all-important first decisive game in the fight to avoid relegation. Matus Bero will start for Losilla, and Kevin Stöger, who will take over the captain’s armband, and Patrick Osterhage will complete the center of midfield.
More about the relegation match between VfL Bochum and Fortuna Düsseldorf
Compared to the 1:4 debacle in Bremen, there were three more changes in the starting eleven. Coach Heiko Butscher had already announced at the start of the week that goalkeeper Andreas Luthe would be parrying for Manuel Riemann, who had been thrown out of the squad, at the end of his career. He also decided on Felix Passlack as right-back. The 25-year-old replaces the recently unsettled 20-year-old Tim Oermann in the starting eleven.
Passlack was shown the red card early on against Leverkusen, but after a successful appeal by VfL against the original ban, he was only suspended for one game, the game against Bremen (1:4). He will probably often have to deal with Düsseldorf’s top striker Cristos Tzolis, who attacks from the left in Düsseldorf’s 4-2-3-1 or 4-1-4-1.
VfL Bochum has a yellow card record
As usual, the VfL’s back four are completed by Ivan Ordets and Keven Schlotterbeck at the centre and Bernardo on the left. There were also major question marks in attack. Heiko Butscher opted for striker Philipp Hofmann and the wingers Maxi Wittek and Takuma Asano. Christopher Antwi-Adjei and Moritz Broschinski, who started in Bremen, are on the bench.
Wittek had impressed in the last few weeks before the Bremen game, and Asano is supposed to provide the necessary pace, although the Japanese player has been out of form recently. On the bench for VfL are Niclas Thiede (goalkeeper) as well as Cristian Gamboa, Noah Loosli, Tim Oermann, Anthony Losilla, Lukas Daschner, Moritz Broschinski, Christopher Antwi-Adjei and Goncalo Paciencia. Erhan Masovic is absent due to illness.
Fortuna Düsseldorf relies on successful starting eleven
Düsseldorf coach Daniel Thioune rested many of his regular players in the unimportant final game of the season against Magdeburg. He starts with the following starting eleven, which was mostly active in the 1:1 draw in Kiel on the penultimate matchday: Kastenmaier – Zimmermann, Oberdorf, de Wijs, Iyoha – Sobottka, Engelhardt – Klaus, Tanaka, Tzolis – Vermeij.
“We’re really up for it!”, says Fortuna coach Daniel Thioune before kick-off.