Agreed. All that effort (and, tonight, drama) just to keep everything as it was. Send three down and have the play-offs for 3rd-6th.Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesWales
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Agreed. All that effort (and, tonight, drama) just to keep everything as it was. Send three down and have the play-offs for 3rd-6th.Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesWales
I see it’s been confirmed that the St Pauli head coach is the new Brighton manager at the age of 31.
Youngest ever Premier League manager? Be interesting to see how he gets on. As for St. Pauli, one or two of their key players are rumoured to be on their way too. Could be tough for them competing at the higher lever next season.Quote:
Originally Posted by the other bob wilson
I can't think of a younger one, shame that about St. Pauli - they were being linked with that Motherwell striker we were supposed to be after, I suppose they'd be a more attractive proposition than us currently.Quote:
Originally Posted by Swiss Peter
I think I would be a bit miffed as a St Pauli fan, or even a German football fan generally to see such a young successful manager leave for Brighton. I know Brighton have done well recently and no doubt offer a bigger salary and wage but it's a shame when managers who win promotion don't finish the job to keep them up. And St Pauli on paper could be every bit as big s club as Brighton, if not bigger.
Not sure.Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesWales
St Pauli went straight down again after one season when promoted 13 odd years ago. Even given a general anti outside investment sentiment across German football, they are a club famous for doing things a bit differently, and they walk a tightrope between preserving the principles and values of the club/fans and exploiting opportunities for revenue generation and growing the club. Hard for them to compete - even against a Premier league club the size of Brighton. From what I've read the fans were pissed off but resigned to losing Hürzeler .
I noticed yesterday that half of the Euro24 stadiums are home to second tier clubs for 2024/25.
I'm sure that's never happened before and another example of the strength of the 2.Bundesliga
Mid-season break after this weekend. 4 points separate 1st and 10th.
Paderborn were top and were beaten 4-2 at home by stumbling Schalke. Kaiserlautern were going well and then got tonked 5-1 at mid-table (not that there seems to be one) Darmstadt.
Elversberg, who were in the regional leagues in 2022, are top, but Himmel knows how long that will continue. Different rules apply for the Bundesliga 2. (Except for poor old Regensburg, stranded at the bottom with 8 points and 7 goals from 16 games). So, Frohe Weihnachten to the maddest division around. Just don't put any money on who'll go up.
What a barmy table it is - Hannover have lost more than a third of their games, yet they’re two points off top.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bluebirdman Of Alcathays
https://www.bundesliga.com/en/2bundesliga/table
German football trivia facts of the day:
1. Borussia is the Latin form of Prussia
2. The German word for a penalty simply translates as 'an eleven metres'.
3. When playing for a German team don't literally translate phrases such as 'on the wing', 'on the head' , 'sweeper' etc. (I speak from experience).
Never heard that about a penalty in Germany. I can remember a book of photographs from the 1978 World Cup where West German captain Bertie Vogts was wearing a captain’s armband with the word “Spieilfuhrer” (sorry if I’ve got the spelling wrong) on it.Quote:
Originally Posted by Taunton Blue Genie
Bertie Vogts played in the first ever Bundesliga game I saw: Gladbach v Bayern and around 1978.. Also playing were Netzer, Gerd Müller, Beckenbauer, Stielike, Hoeness, Alan Simonsen, Sepp Maier and a host of world-class players.Quote:
Originally Posted by the other bob wilson
As for the word 'Führer' it simply means leader and is used in many contexts that don't involve invading Poland :-)
By the way, Münich in Spanish = Monaco.
The names Mönchen (as in Gladbach), München, Monaco are cognate with the English words 'monk(s) / monasteries'
So does spielfuhrer come from the person who is allowed to the speak to officials or is it that he speaks on behalf of the team?Quote:
Originally Posted by Taunton Blue Genie
Team captain.Quote:
Originally Posted by the other bob wilson
With apologies for resurrecting this one, but I know a few were interested. This last weekend broke records for overall attendances at the German second division level, helped by 71.5k at Hertha v HSV (link).
https://www.bundesliga.com/en/2bunde...-leagues-20541
A really odd one is that for a while on Saturday, before HSV and Köln played, Magdeburg were leading the table after 19 games - yet their home record this season is W0 D7 L2. How does that work? (Yeah, I know, lots of away wins 😊)
https://footystats.org/germany/2-bun...y-league-table
Remarkable. I was going to post almost the same thing this evening! I saw the Magdeburg stat on Instagram earlier and quite incredible it is.Quote:
Originally Posted by Swiss Peter
Amazing to see Schalke continuing to struggle.
I read that Magdeburg thing on the net somewhere and didn't actually believe it until I looked it up!Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesWales
Same. And I excitedly told several people in work about it so the bundesliga fan club is growing. One guy even sparked up a chat about Dynamo Dresden in the 3.Liga shortly after.Quote:
Originally Posted by Swiss Peter
Interesting to see Dortmund struggling this season too.
Mid Feb and Magdeburg finally win at home! What a terrible season they must be having. I went to Magdeburg once; they have a fine example of the architecture of Hundertwasser.
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gr%C3%..._von_Magdeburg
I think they were also the team who couldn't score one season so their fans stood behind the goal with big arrows pointing at the goal. Feel free to add your own knowledge of Magdeburg! It's what Friday nights are for.
Pretty sure they won a European tournament in the 70s, definitely reached a Final.
Beat AC Milan in Cup Winners Cup in 74.Quote:
Originally Posted by the other bob wilson
Heard it said on the commentary during the game.
They also played and beat Swansea in the 80s in the same competition.
Another fantastic season in the German second tier!
Only eight points separating top and 8th! Chance, albeit unlikely, of Schalke and Hertha Berlin going down.
I'm on an extended stay in Germany, and trying to get to as much football as possible. Sadly, that's included Hertha's last two home games, both of which they lost in front of crowds of 50k plus. They do feel like a club in freefall, but I can't see them going down. You'd have thought after getting shot of Kanga that their luck had changed!.Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesWales
Had a ticket for Altona 93 (fifth tier) last night, but it was cancelled due to the weather. Anyone been?
I'm mainly based in Hamburg and the feeling around here is that HSV's luck might have changed, and they might finally do it this year. Let's see. (Glatzel has been out injured for a while). They'd have been pleased about Köln's defeat last night.
The Hundertwasser/Magdeburg thing is interesting. A lot of these east German cities are surprisingly interesting to visit - even if making Chemnitz City of Culture seemed a bit implausible. I was in Leipzig last weekend for the St. Pauli game and had the chance to have a good look around. It's a great city - history, nice buildings, lots of canals and green space, and great pubs/breweries.
Anyway St. Pauli v Freiburg today - after trying to find somewhere that might be showing our match earlier!
Decent article here - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football...s/c1km1zpx88jo
Time for another look at the lunacy elsewhere rather than at home. With two games to go it looks like Hamburg could finally clamber their way back up, not because they'll win those games but nobody else seems too bothered about winning themselves. Magdeburg in 4th lost 5-0 at home to relegation threatened Munster and Cologne drew this evening at home to relegation promising Regensburg (who are now down). No-one else seems on particularly winning form apart from Braunschweig in 15th.
I went to Germany last month, stayed in Dusseldorf with the aim of seeing Fortuna, but didn't realise that weekend was part of their policy of giving away all the tickets for free for a few of the games in the season. There were 85,000 applications so had to seek out the Regionaliga West instead. Bah.