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| Gladbach celebrate - picture from Eurosport |
With
three key players – centre-backs Roel Brouwers and Martin Stranzl and striker Igor
de Camargo – all missing for BMG, Felix Magath would have been looking for his
Wolfsburg side to bounce back from the controversial 1-0 loss to Bayern at the
weekend.
It,
emphatically, wasn’t to be. Gladbach were stern at the back, tough in midfield
and pulsating going forward – Marco Reus and Raúl Bobadilla providing the
problems for a, at times, lacklustre Wolfsburg defence.
Filip
Daems, as always, lead from the back, always making that left-hand side look so
much stronger, as did Tony Jantschke on the other side – these two continue to
be unsung heroes for Gladbach.
Because
of the attacking mentality of the pair – Daems particularly - Makoto Hasebe and
Marcel Schäfer were pushed back continually for Wolfsburg, while Reus and Juan
Arango played major roles in sending BMG to the top of the Bundesliga, if only for Friday evening
alone.
Magath
should be worried. His side were demolished by Gladbach, well-and-truly beaten –
not even want-away Diego,
despite his clear ability to inspire teams to victory, could have saved them
here.
Perhaps
one of the most distressing things for Magath is the fact that Wolfsburg
started so well – and then proceeded to crumble in just week three of the new
season; the optimism that comes with a new season should give a side confidence
to stand up and push on – not fall apart.
It
was Hasebo who gave the away side the lead – volleying in with all the
precision and confidence of an experienced centre-forward. Unfortunately, the
man next to him in defence wasn’t quite so good with his feet – Simon Kjaer’s
slip allowing Marco Reus to eventually tap in the equaliser just minutes later.
And
it was Reus who was the main protagonist in giving Gladbach the lead after
wonderful interplay with the BMG midfield – only to be fouled by Michael
Schulze, who had only recently come on for the injured Hasan Salihamidžić,
inside the area. Daems comfortably tucked away the penalty.
After
Raúl Bobadilla’s fantastic wing work was wasted with a lack of composure shown
from Mike Hanke from four yards, Bobadilla himself sent BMG into the half-time
break leading by two goals, nodding in from close range.
Wolfsburg
struggled to defend against the quick movement of Bobadillia, Hanke and the
sheer pace and quality of Reus. Bobadillia showed quick feet in the area a few
times, first forcing BMG ‘keeper ter Stegen into a fine save and, moments
later, allowing Roman Neustädter to fire just over. The impressive Juan Arango
then saw his volley hit the post – via the head of a Wolf.
Arango
then provided a moment of genius for the Borussia-Park crowd, curling a
delicious ball with the outside of his foot, which was met by the laces of Reus
who, ghosting in at the back post, emphatically volleyed home to all-but end
the match as a contest with just sixty-five minutes gone.
After
their early goal, Wolfsburg barely threatened the BMG goal. Thomas Hitzlsperger,
on his debut, waywardly volleyed over and, with ten minutes to go, Patrick
Helmes found himself one-on-one with the ‘keeper – only to see his shot tipped
wide by Diego Benaglio.
Gladbach
have done well to carry the momentum from last season into this season as
Lucien Favre’s stock continues to rise – the former Manager of the Year has now
seen his side stretch their unbeaten run to seven Bundesliga games (five wins
and two draws). The Foals have only conceded ten goals in the league games
under Favre (14) – the last time they conceded more than one in a game, coincidently,
was away at Wolfsburg in February.
This
is the first time that Gladbach have beaten Wolfsburg in their last seven
attempts – only once registering a draw – so a thrashing of Magath’s side will
have sent the Mönchengladbach Crowd home happy – and when they get home, they
will all undoubtedly be taking a screenshot of the league table.
