- 13.03.10
- First Team
Sunday, 1.30 p.m. - Cementing Top Spot
As the season is gradually entering the home stretch, the Red Devils are eager to put in a final spurt. The men from Kaiserslautern are straining at the leash to cement their lead and chalk up a victory against Energie Cottbus on Sunday, March 14, 2010.
FCK - Cottbus
Last week-end’s 1-1 draw against FSV Frankfurt is over and done with. The coaching staff and the team have analyzed and reviewed the game. According to FCK head coach Marco Kurz, the game has just demonstrated that any opponent is a tough challenge. Kurz pointed out that in his opinion hasty discussions about the winning margin were absolutely out of place.
What held true for the struggling side from Frankfurt, applies to FC Energie Cottbus even more. After all, the club from Lusatia was a Bundesliga first division team yet last season. Moreover, at Energie Cottbus one has a variety of experienced and well-known players at one’s disposal. That makes it even more difficult to explain why the team of head coach Claus-Dieter Wollitz has its problems to get going this season.
Wollitz’s side was highly unsettled at last and the coach came to his men’s defense. Whether this is supposed to initiate a sustainable upward trend, however, remains to be seen. Last week, Energie Cottbus chalked up a truly merited 3-1 victory over Aachen. It was Energie’s first home win of the year. With FCK, FC St. Pauli and Arminia Bielefeld, Cottbus is facing three successive games against the league’s top teams – a perfect opportunity to push themselves. 
Claus-Dieter Wollitz wants to build on the win against Aachen in Kaiserslautern on Sunday and sees chances for his men in the encounter wit the Red Devils. However, Wollitz cannot line up his first-choice eleven at the Betzenberg as Roger received a metatarsal fracture last Saturday and will be sidelined for several weeks. Moreover, it is doubtful whether team captain Ovidiu Burca will be match fit in time since he pulled some ligaments in his shoulder. Also Sascha Dum will not be available for selection on Sunday in consequence of a tibial laceration. After having served his one-match suspension (five yellow cards), Marc-André Kruska, on the other hand, is likely to return to the line-up.
As to the Red Devils, Erik Jendrisek, FCK’s top scorer (ten goals) will be able to strengthen his team again on Sunday. The Slovakian forward was forced to watch the game against FSV from the stand as he had picked up his fifth yellow card in the encounter with KSC. Nonetheless, Adam Nemec and Srdjan Lakic are eager to pull on the red jersey too. Hence, FCK boss Kurz is spoilt for choice. Apart from the long-term injured players, Marco Kurz has all players at his disposal.
Whoever will represent 1. FC Kaiserslautern on the field of play on Sunday - the squad will have to deal with a deep-lying opponent. However, backed by the support of their loyal fans – 28,000 tickets have already been sold for the clash with FC Energie Cottbus – the Red Devils will once again be up for the fight. Thanks to the results of FCK’s closest rivals at the top, the stalemate against FSV Frankfurt turned out to be a one-point win rather than a two-point loss in the end. Nevertheless, the Red Devils and their fans are keen on picking up all three points on Sunday.
