Thomas Reis has obviously set the right training focus. VfL Bochum decides the basement duel of the promoted teams with a standard. And a veteran makes a remarkable debut
The return on corners and free kicks has not been worth mentioning so far. Accordingly, Thomas Reis had placed one of the focal points before the basement duel in Fürth on the execution of standards.
The success was immediate: Anthony Losilla nodded the ball into the Fürth goal from close range after a fine free kick by Eduard Löwen. The Bochum captain scored his first Bundesliga goal at the tender age of 35, ending a run of 381 minutes without a VfL goal.
Tailwind instead of red lantern
The 1:0 in the basement duel: An extremely important three-goal win for the promoted team, which is not only proven by a look at the table. After all, Bochum could have fallen to 18th place. But now Thomas Reis’ team has a lot of wind in its sails and has its hand on the light switch in the bottom of the table. Or even lit a little light.
And Losilla? “Of course it’s great that I was able to help the team with my goal,” said Bochum’s captain. “But it was certainly even more important that we brought the right attitude and gave the right answer after the defeat in Leipzig.”
In the phase after the restart, the Bochum side floundered a bit in Fürth, but otherwise stood pretty compact, ultimately taking their chances with determination. “We knew,” said Thomas Reis, “that this was a pressure game, both clubs are in a similar position, also financially. Respect that the team withstood this pressure. “
Defence talent Bella Kotchap was surprisingly absent
Somewhat surprisingly, the Bochum coach had reshuffled his back four and given Armel Bella Kotchap a rest. Reis explained that the U21 international had been under pressure recently and that his transfer to the bench was only a measure for this one game.
Or will Bochum’s defensive talent have to rest a little longer? In any case, the rebuilt central defence with Vasilios Lampropoulos and Erhan Masovic did not do anything wrong; the entire back line was reasonably stable.
So what will become of Bella Kotchap? Part of the story, of course, is that Reis did not agree at all with some of the youngster’s performances – and partly also with the model athlete’s behaviour in training.
In a recent interview with kicker, Reis emphasised that if he went his own way, there would be no stopping Bella Kotchap in his career. In terms of athleticism, the 19-year-old has the best prerequisites of all the Bochum centre-backs.
The next opponent is Frankfurt
It is obvious, however, that this does not automatically mean he will always be in the starting eleven. Especially as Reis has recently criticised the youngster for sinking to the ground somewhat unmotivated in duels, even in training, for whatever reason. And because he apparently sometimes tends to get carried away with his thoughts and his training suffers as a result.
Reis will continue to keep a close eye on him, but for the time being it remains open whether Bella Kotchap will be first choice again next Sunday against Frankfurt. Captain Losilla gave the watchword for this match, the conclusion of the ninth matchday, during the jubilation phase in Fürth: “Against Frankfurt,” said the captain, “we want to make the points from Fürth golden.
