It’s around 2,300 days since Borussia Dortmund’s U23s last played a home game in the 3. Liga. Dynamo Dresden were the opponents that day back in May 2015. But that wait ends when Waldhof Mannheim visit the Rote Erde on Saturday (14:00 CET).
BVB were relegated back to the Regionalliga at the end of 2014/15. Now, six years later, the Black & Yellows are back – and they made a statement on Matchday 1. Despite missing several key players and having Niklas Dams sent off, the team battled their way to a 2-1 away victory against FSV Zwickau. They will be hoping to build on that win on Saturday.
The visitors at Stadion Rote Erde will be the 1983 second-tier champions SV Waldhof Mannheim. The men from Baden-Württemberg currently sit bottom of the table following their 2-0 opening-day defeat to 1. FC Magdeburg, though it is still of course very early days for coach Patrick Glöckner and his side. Having finished last term in eighth place, Mannheim strengthened over the summer and brought in players with plenty of experience. In Marc Schnatterer, they signed an attacker who has made around 400 appearances for Heidenheim in the second and third divisions. Another arrival from the Bundesliga 2 is Alexander Rossipal from Sandhausen. Niklas Sommer, who spent a long time in the 1. FC Nuremberg youth set-up and later played for Sonnenhof-Großaspach in the 3. Liga, was also brought in to play at full-back. “There’s a lot of individual quality. The team places a lot of emphasis on finding footballing solutions,” said BVB boss Enrico Maassen of the opposition. “If everything goes well, Mannheim will be competing in the upper echelons of the table. So we’re awaiting a challenge that will be just as hard as the one in Zwickau.”
There’s huge excitement for the first home game in the Black & Yellow camp. Around 1,000 spectators could be in attendance. Kick-off is at 14:00 CET. BVB boss Enrico Maassen will be without the U23 players who are at the training camp with the seniors, as well as the suspended Niklas Dams and the injured Moritz Broschinski. Ansgar Knauff and Albin Thaqi have left the training camp to provide the U23s with support, however.
