Borussia Mönchengladbach will host newly-promoted SV Elversberg on Saturday, a team fresh off a sensational first Bundesliga win against Bayer Leverkusen. The newcomers from Saarland aim to repeat their coup in Gladbach, as coach Vincent Wagner declared. This is reported by the sports magazine Kicker this week.
Gladbach started the season with a loss and sits in 17th place with zero points after one match in the standings. The team conceded three goals and has a goal difference of minus three. This puts the club already three points behind leaders Bayern Munich. The next home game against fifth-placed Elversberg on September 5th is therefore of great importance.
How is Elversberg preparing for the Gladbach match?
Elversberg coach Vincent Wagner demands more courage from his team for the match in Mönchengladbach. After the 3-2 success against Leverkusen, he said their only chance is to play to their strengths. "If we play with intensity, we can definitely keep up," Wagner stated verbatim. Before the Leverkusen match, he pointed to the large financial gap between the teams, mentioning 25 million against 250 million euros in the value of the starting line-ups. The report notes this estimate was slightly under two-thirds of the actual values.
For the game in Gladbach, the team will need resilience, morale, and unconditional defensive effort. Against Leverkusen, they could only maintain their high intensity for about 70 minutes, fading in the final phase. Seven players in Elversberg's starting eleven had never played in the Bundesliga before. These included Lasse Günther, who made five appearances for FC Augsburg, Cole Campbell with ten games for Dortmund and Hoffenheim, and David Mokwa with two matches for TSG.
What is the historical significance of Elversberg's win?
The victory against Leverkusen was historic. SV Elversberg is the first of four Saarland teams to win its Bundesliga opening match. The other clubs from the region that previously played in the Bundesliga are 1. FC Saarbrücken, Homburg, and Neunkirchen. The last Bundesliga win by a Saarland club before this success dates back to February 1993. Back then, it was 1. FC Saarbrücken that also beat Bayer Leverkusen, 3-1.
The first-ever Bundesliga goal for Elversberg was scored by Lukas Petkov in the eighth minute. The Bulgarian international, who previously had a contract with FC Augsburg and only made eight brief appearances, later also assisted the 3-0 goal by David Mokwa. Petkov said after the match: "For me, it's something very beautiful because it was really a bumpy road to get there." He had loan spells at SC Verl and Greuther Fürth before joining Elversberg. Petkov wants more goals and wins to follow and serve as a role model for the many young talents in the squad. He hopes to cause another surprise in Gladbach.
What does the match mean for Gladbach's season start?
For Borussia Mönchengladbach, the home game against the rising newcomers is a crucial opportunity to get the first points of the season. The situation after the opening defeat is tense. A win would not only move them up the table but also build the necessary confidence for the challenges ahead. The team must take the individual quality of the opponents from Saarland seriously, a team that earned its first win with great fight and conviction.
The current form and injury situation of the Gladbach players can be checked on our injuries page. The tactical approach and possible personnel decisions for this special match will be in focus in the coming days. Preparing for an opponent with nothing to lose and plenty of courage presents a unique challenge. Gladbach must be focused and play with the necessary toughness from the first minute to take the initiative and put the ambitious visitors in their place. All other fixtures for the first half of the season can be found on our fixtures page.
