1. FC Köln don't want to play the game against TSG Hoffenheim at all, but they have to. They only have two days after their Conference League game to recover for the Bundesliga. Steffen Baumgart's team does this exceptionally well. It's enough for one point.
No breather, no Hector, no Hennes - but a lot of defiance: Badly battered 1. FC Köln earned a well-deserved point against their feared opponent TSG Hoffenheim. At the end of the 12th Bundesliga matchday there was a 1-1 (1-1), for FC it was the second game in three days. Florian Kainz (13th) gave Cologne the lead, Jacob Bruun Larsen (35th) equalized. Hoffenheim ended the game after a yellow-red card against Ozan Kabak (87th) with ten men. In the end, after the last eight defeats against TSG, there was still a draw for FC, both teams kept in touch with the European Cup ranks. And that wasn't necessarily to be expected.
Less than 53 hours earlier, coach Steffen Baumgart's team had won the Conference League at FC Slovacko (1-0), this match had been postponed by a day because of fog. The trip to the Czech province had also claimed two more injuries in the already decimated squad - and they really hurt: Captain Jonas Hector and six Ellyes Skhiri were the ones who kept FC together despite the permanent rotation.
Five other starting eleven candidates were missing anyway, given all these factors, the tabloid already wrote about "Baumgart's toughest FC game". And then Hennes also signed off. The billy goat, otherwise at every game in Müngersdorf, stayed with a cold in Cologne Zoo.
In front of 49,000 spectators, the duel started evenly. Hoffenheim was strong in the game, combining again and again until the last third. Cologne, meanwhile, pressed more cautiously than usual - but countered to lead. Stanley Nsoki misjudged a long ball, Linton Maina was unstoppable after that and served top scorer Kainz in the middle. Hoffenheim always looked capable of creating danger, however, and minutes later Marvin Schwäbe had to deflect a cross from Robert Skov. It went back and forth now. Maina (25') and Kainz (33') each narrowly missed for Cologne, on the other side Hoffenheim used a ball loss. Christoph Baumgartner prepared very well, Bruun Larsen was correct.
It was a completely open game even after the break, in which the Cologne team quickly had the next big chance through Kainz (52'). TSG coach Andre Breitenreiter switched his back three, Nsoki and Kevin Vogt were replaced by Kevin Akpoguma and Eduardo Quaresma. Hoffenheim's defense was now more stable, but both teams continued to play forward.
