Soccer / fortuna dusseldorf

1. Fortuna's last-minute qualities It speaks for the mental strength of Friedhelm Funkel's team that they once again scored an important goal at a very late stage. Examples are Dodi Lukebakios 3:3 at FC Bayern, Oliver Finks 1:0 in Hannover and now Benito Ramans 2:1 in Augsburg. The team is highly concentrated, never gives up and looks for its last chance - an immensely important quality in the relegation fight. 2. The end of the Ducksch lull Marvin Ducksch, the top scorer in the second league, was left without a goal for the entire first half of the season - an agonisingly long time. In Augsburg, the former Kieler scored his first goal, and a very important one: His 1-0 just before the break gave Fortuna a lot of confidence. "I'm very happy about my goal, but even more about the victory," said Ducksch radiantly. Sports Director Lutz Pfannenstiel had predicted the goal: "I gave Marvin the chance to score today, just as I predicted his two goals in the Telekom Cup against Hertha. Ducksch confirmed the story: "And you're welcome to go on like this." Funkel added: "Then Lutz should best tell Marvin now that he's scoring three goals." 3. Trainer posse welds the team even closer together "We have shown that we have to and can get rid of all this," explained the outstanding director Kevin Stöger. The theatre about the contract extension for coach Funkel did not pass the Düsseldorfers by without a trace, but they processed it in the right way and put it into even more cohesion. The victory in Augsburg was also for the coach, as Kaan Ayhan remarked, "but he was also very important in tabular form". 4. 21 points after 18 games - like 2013 Fortuna also had 21 points in the last Bundesliga year 2012/13 after 18 match days, and the opponent on this 18th match day was FC Augsburg. Now we have to prove that history does not repeat itself otherwise - because after this great phase the team was still relegated because of various quarrels and problems. Today's squad is of course a completely different one, the situation not comparable - provided that the club management now keeps calm and continuity and avoids unnecessary disturbance manoeuvres as in the training camp of Marbella. But Funkel also warns: "21 points are great, but they're not enough to keep you in your class. Fortuna already had it once after 18 match days." 5. There is no goalkeeper discussion Michael Rensing didn't look very good at the equalizer - because he said he saw the ball too late. His coach, however, defended the keeper: "You have to praise the shooter once in a while, Jonathan Schmid did that very well". Doubts about the hierarchy among the goalkeepers would certainly not arise, Funkel assured: "Micha is our number one, and that will remain so. With Jaro Drobny and Rapha Wolf we have two good people at the back, but there is no goalkeeper discussion at all with us".