FC Saarbrücken have already secured their place in history by reaching the semi-finals. A fourth-tier team has never gone so far in the DFB Cup before. However: The team from Saarland will not be playing in the fourth division much longer. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Regional League South-west was ended early and, as league leaders, FCS have been promoted to the third division. The declared target for the season has thus been achieved – and now everybody at the club is concentrating on achieving more in this fairy tale season with the success of the team in the cup so far. That started last August with a 3-2 win against second division SSV Jahn Regensburg and that was followed with the really big shock of a 3-2 win against FC Köln. A wave of euphoria combined with tactical discipline and high quality took the team through the next two, extremely dramatic rounds. FCS went through on penalties against Karlsruher SC and against the Bundesliga club Fortuna Düsseldorf. The images after the win against Fortuna went all over Germany and Saarbrücken earned huge sympathy as the battling underdog. Now the team coached by Lukas Kwasniok, who took over from the former Bundesliga and Werkself player Dirk Lottner, is looking to cause an upset against a third Bundesliga club from the Rhineland.
A look at the Saarbrücken squad quickly reveals: A Regional League team does not usually look like this. A majority of the team have third and even second division experience and some have even played in the Bundesliga. For example, the goalkeeper Daniel Batz, who played one game for SC Freiburg, and is the celebrated hero and face of the improbable success in this cup campaign with his ability to save penalties. There is a long list of established professional players: Striker Tobias Jänicke, who scored against FC Köln and Fortuna Düsseldorf, was a regular first choice with Hansa Rostock in the second division, winger Markus Mendler made 16 appearances in the Bundesliga for FC Nürnberg, defender Fanol Perdedaj played for Hertha Berlin eight times. And then there is probably the most well-known name in the team: Christopher Schorch: The FCS defender was once one of the most promising central defenders in Germany and he joined Real Madrid at the age of 18 where he played for the reserve team at the age of the U19s. Schorch went on to play for FC Köln and several other clubs in the second and third divisions. The now 31-year-old joined Saarbrücken at the start of the season and has demonstrated his ability in impressive fashion: This team, with players from Bundesliga club academies, has a quality that most third division clubs will struggle to compete with.
Given the current situation, there is an obvious question: Can Saarbrücken compensate for the lack of match practice? The last competitive match for FCS was almost three months ago in a 1-0 defeat at Astoria Walldorf in the Regional League South-west on 7 March. The whole team has only trained together since the middle of May and then with the ending of the Regional League the sole focus turned to the match against the Werkself – but Bayer 04 have already played five games in the Bundesliga after the break enforced by the coronavirus pandemic. How Saarbrücken will fare physically as well as in terms of football is even unclear to the club management in the Saarland.
Promotion to the third division does not mean the end of FC Saarbrücken's ambitions at all. The team has the quality to play at a level higher. Waldhof Mannheim, constant competitors for FCS in the race for the Regional League South-west title in recent years, are currently in a promotion spot in the third division. Will Saarbrücken be able to achieve something similar in the coming season? The fact the team can compete with professional clubs has been ably demonstrated in the cup this season. On top of that, there is the structural progress within the club: Their home ground of the Ludwigspark stadium is currently being redeveloped to meet the requirements of professional football. For that reason, the game against Bayer 04 will be played in the neighbouring town of Völklingen.
Saarbrücken will provide stiff opposition for the Werkself. The fourth division side has a tactically, extremely well-developed team that bears no relation to amateur football. Bayer 04 can expect a packed defence and a midfield that will look to crowd out the centre of the field, while their lightning-fast strikers wait to play on the break. Of course, the Werkself go into the game as favourites but it will definitely need a top performance to beat this team – and possibly a lot of patience as well.
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