Fabio Torsiello and Leander Popp in Unterhaching: Almost old hands

Heiko Herrlich concluded his statement on the game with the sentence: “Now even more so.” That was already remarkable in itself. The former Bundesliga coach took over the SpVgg Unterhaching during the winter break when it was in the last place in the table. They also consolidated this last place at FC Ingolstadt on Sunday, with a frustrating 1: 3 – five points already lacking the penultimate of the third division. But it was also the case that the team no longer played like a relegation for the first time in a long time, rather it had lost unhappily. This may also be due to the guidance of the new trainer in a way, but for the now-first right mood, two people were primarily decisive who are not nearly as old as the 53-year-old.

What is good for test games sometimes. At the beginning of January, the year of the game association started with a 0-0 against Greuther Fürth. In the second half, the Hachingeners noticed a 19-year-old opponent who did a lot of operation on the wing. They inquired rarely because Leandro Popp had hardly been used at Kleeblatt, even in the second team. SpVgg President Manfred Schwabl had his good contacts with Fürth’s sports director Stephan Fürstner. A second personnel came up via Popp’s player advice, and last Thursday Popp and the German-Italian Fabio Torsiello trained in Haching for the first time.

The two know each other, they made their debut in the German U19 national team last autumn, Torsiello even scored the goal in 1: 5 against Denmark. Of course, this was still missing on Sunday in Ingolstadt because the Schanzer also scored the goal – into their own goal. But: “I think we did it quite well. The only problem is to take the chance, ”said Popp in the cabin wing after the game. The two had numerous degrees, Torsiello missed the empty box after only three minutes with a lifter. “We tried to put pressure on it all the time, to be there, get a pace in,” summarized Popp.

There is a lot in motion in the third division these days. The teams in the relegation battle are particularly trying to optimize their squad, as the hickhack around the former haching striker Patrick Hobsch, who is now playing for sixty and is being mapped by Rot-Weiss Essen. At the beginning there is always the question of what you can afford. It is therefore all the more surprising that the two suburban accesses cost nothing, even though they, that is already evident, clearly make the team better: Popp as a wing attacker, torsiello as a center forward. The two could also confidently exchange the positions. “This is a win-win situation,” explains President Schwabl on request.

Haching truly cannot lure with money, but with a de-facto operating guarantee. Popp in Fürth and Torsiello in Darmstadt should not be handed over, so they are awarded. Incidentally, Torsiello already has 160 relegation battle appointments-in the first Bundesliga. Obviously, he not only has great competition from the lilies, but in Florian Kohfeldt a not quite as good -natured coach, as was before Torsten Lieberknecht. The price-performance ratio can almost be considered sensational: According to Schwabl, the association only pays an ordinary salary. This in turn is partially compensated for by the DFB funding pot, which provides for money for every minute of play, the German U-23 players in professional football in the third division are the field.

“We have lost pace,” says Schwabl, which means that he means the paths of Aaron Keller and Maurice Krattenmacher. Basically, the question always arises: “Does 19-year-old help you?”, And in this case the truth was on the pitch. The team had come far too static, now even the many long balls make sense again because there are now two players who can chase them after them, and also shift the pressing closer to the opposing goal. Is that enough to keep the league? Maybe not, “it will be more difficult from game to game,” says Schwabl. But at least Popp and Torsiello are already halfway well when Unterhaching receives the penultimate Osnabrück on Sunday afternoon.

Konstantin Heide only turned 19 on Monday, and on Sunday he unnecessarily gave the opponent a gift. As much as the goalkeeper, which became the U17 world champion, shone with parades in the second half, so much his bad fist defense had made it possible to lead the Ingolstadt leadership. Heide’s achievements are unsteady, which raises the big question whether the team is ripe enough for the relegation battle. “He is definitely annoyed. I also had phases of such where something like that happened to me, ”said Popp, asked about the scene. He is seven months older – and sometimes sounds like an old hand.