An End to the Away Slump? Cup Match Serves as a Warning for Schalke

Christoph Baumgartner’s assessment wasn’t quite accurate. “We’ve now shown that we can do it on the road, too,” said RB Leipzig’s match-winner in the cup match against Rot-Weiss Essen. Yet this wasn’t the first away win for coach Martin Demichelis’s team; they had already secured a victory against fourth-division side Trier in the first round of the cup. In the Bundesliga and Champions League, however, they had suffered five straight away losses. 

To truly end the away slump, a win on Saturday (3:30 p.m./Sky) against newly promoted Schalke 04 is a must. The 2-1 victory in Essen—achieved while down a man and after falling behind—was likely exactly the right preparation for that. “Everything that could go wrong did,” said captain David Raum.

Baumgartner scores, Raum is proud

The national team player was referring to the early deficit and the yellow-red card shown to Nicolas Seiwald shortly before halftime. “I don’t know if many people still believed in us, especially given our struggles on the road,” Baumgartner said. “It was impressive, then, to deservedly win the game while down a man.”

Baumgartner, who had been sidelined by injury for a long time, made sure of that himself: He came on as a substitute just over an hour into the game and then, within five minutes (78th and 82nd minutes), fired Leipzig into the Round of 16. “As captain, that makes me very proud of the team. It was a true testament to our determination in the second half. We came out strong, pushed forward, and created scoring chances. In the end, that’s what quality is all about,” said Raum.

After an unsatisfactory first half, Demichelis brought in the right players; Antonio Nusa, who came on alongside Baumgartner, set up the equalizer. With additional wins in Gelsenkirchen and against FC Augsburg, Demichelis could head into the next international break with his position firmly secured.

Effective Rotation

It would be incredibly important for the team and the club to put an end to the coaching debate that has been simmering practically since the start of the season. Because of the dismissal of the popular and successful Ole Werner—a move many fans found incomprehensible—Demichelis never had the support that a new coach normally enjoys. Now, the former Argentine national team player is earning that support.

“Given the conditions in this stadium, against such a tough opponent, and with one fewer player, that was an incredible performance,” said Demichelis. “Every player who came off the bench was absolutely on point.”

What the game in Essen and the previous victory against Elversberg also showed: Demichelis’s rotation is working, even though the first halves of both games fell short of the team’s own expectations. Demichelis made five changes to the starting lineup in Essen; he made as many as eight in the 4-0 win against Elversberg.

The Nyland Gamble

So the squad has good depth, and it should also significantly boost morale and foster healthy competition within the team if Demichelis follows through on his words that every player is needed. As a result, the Norwegian Örjan Nyland was given the starting spot in goal for the past two games. The 36-year-old had recently lost his spot as Norway’s national team goalkeeper due to glaring mistakes. A gamble by Demichelis that paid off.

Baumgartner, who was already Leipzig’s top scorer last season, is taking care of the rest. In Madrid, he set up the consolation goal; against Elversberg, the Austrian national team player scored once himself—and now in Essen, he even scored twice.

Physically, playing for more than 30 minutes would have been nearly impossible. “A week ago, I hadn’t played a game in four and a half months. So it would be crazy if it weren’t that way,” said the 27-year-old. As a result, he’s likely to come off the bench again against Schalke.