Mid-week Deciders In The Bundesliga
Posted by Pete in Bundesliga, Champions League, UEFA Cup | 5 May 2006
After the frankly uneventful DFB Cup Final of last weekend, everyone's focus returned to the mid-week Bundesliga matches. After all, apart from Pizarro's headed winner and a few spurned chances from Roy Makaay, the only excitement to be had was the omnipresent Beckenbauer's post-match criticism of Michael Ballack, who was apparently playing as if he was "resting himself for Chelsea". Well, if Franz wants him to stay, then he's got a funny way of showing it.
And so to the league. Starting from the top. Bayern and Hamburg both won, so for now the title is still up for grabs. Until the weekend that is. Schalke and Werder are both in UEFA Cup and Champions League limbo respectively, untouchable by anyone else with the last UEFA Cup place* almost certain to go to Leverkusen who spanked (and there's no any word for it) Hertha 5:1 in Berlin.
Just as in every other league there's nothing to play for in mid-table except pride, although Dortmund's game against Hannover saw the long-awaited return of Jaap Stam lookalike, Jan Koller. After some seven months out with a torn ligament, he happily made it to the end of the game. His fellow Czech, Tomas Rosicky, impressed his possible future employers with a sweetly-struck freekick, although the deal with Athletico Madrid is still not fixed. But more on transfer rumours/deals when the season has reached its conclusion. So in Dortmund's case, this week was a case of "Czech in, Czech out". Sorry, I just couldn't resist.
And so to the bottom. Cologne and Duisburg bit the big one and will be replaced by Bochum and Aachen. Who will be replacing either Kaiserslautern, Wolfsburg, Mainz or, and perhaps less likely, Frankfurt, Bielefeld or Hannover is anyone's guess, although Cottbus stand a good chance.
*I'm not quite sure what happens to DFB Cup runners-up, but I'm assuming they go into the UEFA Cup. I'll get back to you on that one.
