The Bundesliga has two teams in the Champions League group stage and five teams in the UEFA Cup third qualifying round.
But it’s not over.
Because UEFA also has a way to qualify for the first round of UEFA Cup qualifiers through the Fair Play Award.
Germany has qualified for a UEFA Cup because it ranks in the top of the fair play points in all European leagues in the season, with fewer fouls and conflicts.
And this qualification was awarded to Hertha, Berlin, which has the highest fair competition score except the team that qualified for the European War.
Then, in the first round of Hertha UEFA Cup qualifier in Berlin, the total score of two rounds was 1, and the Otis Club from the first division of the Republic of Moldova advanced to the second round.
In the second round of UEFA Cup qualifiers, Hertha Berlin easily defeated the Slovenian First Division Inter Broger Club by three points in two rounds and advanced to the third round.
In this way, in the fourth and fifth rounds of the League, in addition to Bayern Munich and Werder Bremen, six teams from Schalke 4, Hamburg, Wolfsburg, Hoffenheim, Stuttgart and Hertha Berlin participated in the third round of the UEFA Cup qualifier, which is the largest number of teams participating in the UEFA Cup in all European countries.
The top teams in the Champions League are like a cloud, and the competition is too fierce. No one dares to talk big easily.
However, there were as many as six teams in the Bundesliga in the last UEFA Cup, which made some German media very proud to shout out the slogan of the final meeting and winning the championship and runner-up in the last UEFA Cup.
Of course, this is only the third qualifying round, and the group stage has not yet arrived. The big media such as Pictorial and Kicker will not shout out such slogans. These slogans are all small media.
But even those serious big media are extremely optimistic about the prospects of the Bundesliga team in this UEFA Cup.
In this atmosphere, the first three matches of the third round and the first leg of the UEFA Cup qualifier started at the same time on September 16th.
After 9 minutes of competition, Schalke 4 predictably won 41 away games against Greek Athletics in Cyprus’s First Division, and Hertha Berlin also won 2 home games against St Patrick from Irish Premier League, both of whom took the initiative in the second round.
The remaining games will not start face-to-face until September 1st.
Chapter 176 The first battle in Houdusse
Hoffenheim’s first opponent in the history of European War was Houdusse, who came from Serie A, ranked seventh at the end of the season and at present.
Obviously, such an opponent from the top league is much more difficult to deal with than Schalke 4 and Hertha Berlin who meet their minor league opponents.
Moreover, Hoffenheim has also drawn a more unfavorable schedule.
On September 1st, Hoffenheim will first face Houdusse at Karl Benz Stadium for the first leg of the UEFA Cup third round qualifier.
Then less than a week later, on September 24, Hoffenheim will go away to challenge Houdusse for the second round.
From the schedule
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It’s not very good for Hoffenheim
However, the German media generally believe that the Bundesliga has won four consecutive victories at present, and Hoffenheim should have no problem beating Houdusse, a middle-class team in Serie A, at home.
Especially in Hoffenheim, there is Lu Wenbin, a striker with a high goal rate and nine goals in four Bundesliga games. It should not be difficult to beat his opponent with home advantage.
The difference is whether we can win more goals to make the second round easier.
Therefore, the German media is almost one-sided optimistic about Hoffenheim’s home victory over Houdusse.
In addition to the support of the national team by our own media, there are naturally reasons for Hoffenheim’s winning streak and heroic state in recent games.
Hoffenheim fans also took out 12 points of confidence and enthusiasm to prepare for the first European home game in the club’s history, although the stadium was rented.
However, Ralph, who has coached the top leagues and had experience in Europe, naturally cannot let the players be influenced by media comments.
Although Hoffenheim is ranked first in the Bundesliga in the same top league, it should be stronger than Houdusse, the seventh in Serie A.
But this new season has just begun. Who knows if Hoffenheim and Houdusse will be ranked in reverse at the end of the season?
Moreover, football is not certain to win if it is strong, especially for Hoffenheim, a recruit who has never had experience in European war.
According to statistics, the speed of receiving the ball in the Champions League is about 15% faster than that in Bundesliga. If the Bundesliga team is not mentally prepared to play in the Champions League according to the rhythm in the league, it will generally be miserable.
Of course, it’s not Bayern Munich who are champions League regulars. They naturally know how to play in the Champions League.
What I’m talking about here is an inexperienced recruit like Hoffenheim
Although the UEFA Cup is not comparable to the Champions League, it is also a place where teams in the middle reaches of national leagues compete. The overall rhythm is also faster than that of the national league and the technical and tactical level is higher than that of the league.
Then it comes to the rich bonuses and promotion in European games, and the fact that honorary players want to gain greater fame through European games. Obviously, everyone is more energetic in playing European games than the league.
Ralph specifically told everyone in the team that the results in the League must not be in the UEFA Cup. The reference person should not have the arrogant mentality that the Bundesliga is the first at home and Serie A is sure to win easily.
Everyone must look at the media comments and have a correct attitude. From the first minute to the last minute of the game, there must be no slack, whether it is ahead or behind.
Ralph’s warning still sounded a little.
There have been some bad signs in the team recently.
Beating Bayern Munich in the season and winning the German Cup in the season, the Bundesliga started four consecutive victories and dominated the first place in the standings, which made some players have the idea that the top league is so much
Ralph’s warning just made these people put their attitudes right.
On September 17th, the day before the game, the Houdusse team arrived in Mannheim to hold a pre-match press conference. Head coach marino announced the team’s list of ten players.
However, the starting list has not been announced.
The same is true here in Hoffenheim. Ralph also announced the big list, but did not announce the starting list.
Marino and Ralph are both cautious about knowing the starting list before each other and taking countermeasures.
Although everyone knows who are the main players of the two teams, there may still be some slight changes in the game.
For the away game against Hoffenheim, Houdusse coach marino is quite low-key
Marino commented that although Hoffenheim participated in the European War for the first time, they are strong and currently ranked first in the Bundesliga, which is actually the level of the Champions League team.
At present, Houdusse, ranked seventh in Serie A, aims to pursue an away draw or score an away goal, and then return to his home in the second leg to decide the outcome.
Marino’s initiative to show weakness is very appetizing to the German media, and no one thinks there is anything wrong with it.
In this way, the opponent showed weakness and his own confidence was full. On the afternoon of September 1, local time, more than 40 thousand Hoffenheim fans flocked to the outside of Karl Benz Stadium, and finally more than 20 thousand people had to enter the stadium.
There are so many people left in the stadium that you can watch the team’s first European game in the square or bar outside.
After all, it is still inconvenient to go abroad to watch football in Houdusse, so hundreds of fans have been assigned a small corner of the stadium stands
Before the start of the game, the two sides warmed up and returned to the locker room to make final preparations.
Ralph specifically told the team members again that everyone should focus on their opponents and stay awake until the end of the game.
While marino, the head coach in Houdusse, seized the opportunity to lay out tactics.
Actually, marino is not as low-key as his pre-match press conference showed.
A bloody and ambitious head coach can’t throw in the towel before 
the game starts.
The only purpose of weakness is to paralyze the opponent and let him underestimate the enemy to see if he has a chance to beat him.
Of course, marino has not finished pinning his hopes on these off-site moves
To beat Hoffenheim, who is currently ranked first in the Bundesliga away from home, we still have to think about specific tactics.