Coach Pal Dardai’s return to Hertha BSC failed. The Berliners lose 2: 4 (0: 2) against Werder Bremen.
Pal Dardai was hugely disappointed. With a grim expression, the Hertha BSC coach took note of the final whistle after the 2: 4 (0: 2) home defeat against Werder Bremen. “The problems in the head are bigger than I expected,” said the Hungarian after his return to the old lady on the coaching bench at Sky. Kevin-Prince Boateng gave perseverance slogans, with the experienced professional struggling for words: “We haven’t been relegated yet.”
However, the performance against the Hanseatic League was a disaster in the first half. Dardai: “We were totally blocked there. We have to work a lot mentally. It’s a matter of the mind, the second half was okay.”
The rescue mission for Dardai in his third term at Hertha is becoming more and more hopeless with five games left. Attacker Marvin Ducksch (6th/27th/51st) decided the game in the absence of national striker Niclas Füllkrug (calf problems) with a furious hat-trick and became a nightmare for Hertha.
Bremen were accompanied by around 25,000 supporters to the capital in the best spring weather and were able to free themselves from the worst fears of relegation with their first success since the end of February. Mitchell Weiser (61st) increased for Werder, Jessic Ngankam (68th) and Dodi Lukebakio (79th, penalty kick) made cosmetic results for Hertha.
The Berliners, who parted ways with Sandro Schwarz six days ago and have now been without a win for seven games, are more at risk than ever of falling into second division for the first time in eleven years. The gap to the relegation place is three points.
Werder Bremen: First hat-trick by Marvin Ducksch
“If I have one request, it would be to take the lead in front of 70,000 spectators,” Dardai said before the game – but the Hungarian’s wish was shattered in the sixth minute. After Lucas Tousart lost the ball, Jens Stage cleverly put the ball through to Ducksch, who pushed in ice cold for an early lead.
The Hertha tried to react to the early neck blow, but remained too imprecise in the last third of the attack. Werder was the more active team – and struck again in the person of Ducksch. The great uncertainty could be seen in the hosts, nothing went together. Ducksch missed the hat trick from close range just before the break (41st).
“Finally tear yourselves apart for Hertha BSC”, the fans had demanded on a banner before the game – but the hoped-for turnaround did not materialize even after the change of sides. Dardai brought on Agustin Rogel, Suat Serdar and Boateng, but the headlines continued to belong to Ducksch. The striker made the decision after a cross from Anthony Jung – his first hat-trick in the Bundesliga.
Weiser even went one better, goals from Ngankam and Lukebakio brought back a little hope for Berlin. But it wasn’t enough for more. Dardai’s rescue mission is getting harder and harder.
Hertha BSC – Werder Bremen: The voices
Pal Dardai (Hertha BSC coach): “That’s football. I was mentally prepared for a defeat. We got a goal straight away, the team was blocked. The pressure was a huge problem, we urgently need to do something to break the blockage. We don’t need to talk about the course of the game, it was a mental thing in this situation. We weren’t brave, Bremen deserved to win.”
Ole Werner (Werder Bremen coach): “A very good performance from us, in an exceptional setting. That stays in mind, the fans carried us today. We got our first chance and then the game went our way. We were very effective, 4-0 the game was over in the back. The bottom line is that our performance today was very stable, just a compliment to the lads.”
