Waldhof Mannheim won three important points in the fight to stay in the league in the duel with Arminia Bielefeld – and that also because a debutant played a strong game in goal.
“Waldhof never gives up,” the Mannheim fans wrote in large letters on a banner and used it as their motto in the stadium before kick-off against Arminia Bielefeld – and they were right. Because Waldhof Mannheim earned a lucky 1-0 (1-0) against the guests from East Westphalia on Friday evening. Samuel Abifade made the difference with his header to take the lead in the 33rd minute. With the win, Waldhof moves within two points of Arminia, but remains in 17th place in the 3rd league table.
Arminia Bielefeld owns the initial phase
But the guests from Bielefeld got off to a better start. After eleven minutes, Merveille Biankadi appeared alone in front of keeper Omer Hanin, who was allowed to play for the Waldhof for the first time and replaced regular keeper Lucien Hawryluk. Hanin prevented Arminia from taking the lead with strong foot defense. Less than five minutes later, Hanin had to rush out of his box again because Sam Schreck appeared in the penalty area after Fabian Klos’ pass, but put the ball well next to the goal (16th).
Waldhof tried to calm the game down and had their first good opportunity to take the lead in the 29th minute. After a cross, Martin Kobylanski finished at the second post, but was unable to put the ball into the goal from a tight angle.
Abifade did better just four minutes later. He also headed the ball from a cross and pushed the ball over the line to take the lead. Before the goal, Christopher Lannert fell to the ground after a challenge, but the whistle was not blown off.
Break tour for Waldhof Mannheim
The guests from Bielefeld were unimpressed and appeared again in front of keeper Hanin in the 37th minute through goal getter Klos. But he was there again and kept it 1-0 for the home team with a strong save. In the 43rd minute, the aluminum saved Arminia’s next big chance. So the Waldhof went into the dressing room with a happy lead.
After the break, the home team created their first opportunity, this time through Terrence Boyd (54′). In return, Bielefeld increased the pressure and tested Hanin again, but the goalkeeper continued to be a reliable support for the Waldhof.
Bielefeld missed the equalizer
The game now became noticeably more heated and disjointed. Nassim Boujellab could have scored the equalizer after a bad pass from Mannheim’s defense, but his finish was not precise enough (71′). In the 78th minute, the aluminum, in this case the crossbar, prevented Bielefeld from scoring again.
In the final phase, the guests pushed Waldhof deep into their own half, and relief was rarely achieved. In the 90th minute, however, it was Jonas Carls who could have made it 2-0, but missed Mannheim’s best chance in the second half. But the missed opportunity didn’t change anything about the victory. Mannheim thus gets three important points in the relegation battle.
Waldhof Mannheim – Arminia Bielefeld 1:0 (1:0)
SV Waldhof Mannheim: Hanin – Klünter, Seegert, Karbstein, Bolay – Rieckmann (23. Wagner), Bahn – Kobylanski (71. Arase), Hawkins (70. Carls), Abifade (60. Jans) – Boyd
Arminia Bielefeld: Kersken – Lannert, Schneider, Großer, Oppie – Corboz, Wörl (68. Boujellab) – Biankadi (82. Shipnoski), Schreck (90. Gohlke), Mizuta (68. Yildirim) – Klos
Referee: Wolfgang Haslberger
Viewers: 15.000
Tore: 1:0 Abifade (33.)
Yellow cards: Karbstein (5), Hawkins (4), Hanin, Carls, Bahn (3) – Boujellab (4), Yildirim (5), Gohlke (2)
Broadcast on Saturday, March 16, 2024, 5:30 p.m., SWR Sport, SWR