Nobody at Hannover 96 believes in a possible relegation. Instead, they are flirting with a surprise at the Millerntor
The 2:2 draw against Darmstadt 98 last Sunday has encouraged the Hannover 96 camp. “I saw a lot of elements in the game that I imagine football to be like,” said a delighted head coach Christoph Dabrowski. “The team acted very passionately and played with great energy.” A win would have been thoroughly deserved. And the Hannover team could have done with two more points in the relegation battle.
Only two points currently separate 96 from Fortuna Düsseldorf in the relegation place. “It is my full conviction that we will not be relegated. I’m not afraid,” explains veteran Dominik Kaiser (33) ahead of Sunday’s away match at FC St. Pauli. Kaiser will in all likelihood replace the yellow-suspended Gael Ondoua on the double six alongside Dutchman Mark Diemers. “Dominik is a character player,” said Dabrowski in praise of the ex-captain, whose experience should be in particularly high demand in Hamburg on Sunday.
The league leaders should not allow themselves to slip up in the tight promotion race. “St. Pauli are rightly up there. They played a fantastic first half of the season. In the last few weeks, however, they have certainly imagined one or two results differently,” Dabrowski tells us. “We have the belief and the will to go to Hamburg and score. We have a great desire to give St. Pauli a leg up.”
Linton Maina is also expected to play his part in this. The nimble winger had been injured recently and had to take a break against Darmstadt. The 22-year-old has been back in team training since Wednesday. If everything continues to go smoothly, Maina could even move into the starting line-up on Sunday.
