Darmstadt (dpa/lhe) - With a win in the first round of the DFB Cup at FC Ingolstadt 04, the players of SV Darmstadt 98 want to give their coach Torsten Lieberknecht a nice birthday present. The second division soccer team is slightly favored on Monday (6:01 p.m. / Sky). But Lieberknecht, who turns 49 on the day of the game, warns against underestimating the third division. "Ingolstadt has a team that, in my opinion, has almost a stronger squad than last year in the second division. So we have to be on track," said the Lilien coach on Saturday.
Last year, a third division team was the stumbling block in the first round in 1860 Munich. This should not be repeated under any circumstances. "We respect the quality of our opponents, but we definitely want to get through one round," said Lieberknecht. After all, it is the sporting dream of every footballer to reach the final "and in our case to be able to go to Berlin with the whole of Darmstadt. We want to get as far as possible, even if it's very difficult every year," said the coach .
In Ingolstadt he has to do without the injured Clemens Riedel and Aaron Seydel. In addition, Jannik Müller falls out with tonsillitis. "We have to be creative now and see how we can reorganize the defensive line," said Lieberknecht. Whether Oscar Vilhelmsson is an alternative up front again will only become clear after the final training session. The Swede has already trained individually and partly with the team.
Lieberknecht struggles a little with the appointment on Monday evening. For some of the Lilien's enthusiastic supporters, it will be a feat of strength to be able to watch the game live on site. Unless they take time off. "In my opinion, it's a game that could have been played well at the weekend," said Lieberknecht.
