Scrappy but important: Three huge points against Schalke!
Pál Dárdai’s rotation continued in Gelsenkirchen as he made eight changes to his starting eleven. Only goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow, Lucas Tousart and Krzysztof Piątek remained in the line-up. Marvin Plattenhardt returned to the team after his recovery from COVID-19 while Mathew Leckie saw action for the first time in 81 days. Youngster Jonas Michelbrink made a matchday squad for the second time with Márton Dárdai and Lukas Klünter receiving a rest and staying in Berlin.
Recovering from an early shock
The new-look XI wasted no time creating the first chance of the game, Javairô Dilrosun shooting over the bar barely three minutes into the game. The hosts, with their squad short on numbers due to three positive coronavirus cases and four other players having to quarantine, were clinical when an early opportunity came their way. Amine Harit scored with Schalke’s first effort of the game (6’) to give the home side the lead. Our Herthaner took a few minutes to recover from the shock, but the answer arrived not too long after. A perfectly flighted free-kick from Plattenhardt found captain Dedryck Boyata in space and the Belgian headed home a powerful equaliser (19’). A second goal almost followed but Piątek’s effort was ruled out for offside (26’). The blue-and-whites were on top at this point, mounting pressure on the Schalke defence and probing for openings. The hosts struggled to get forward themselves, with only Klaas-Jan Huntelaar posing a threat on goal (37’). At the other end, Dilrosun had the final shot of the half from an inside-left position (44’). The half ended level with the Dutchman’s effort going over the crossbar.
Substitute Ngankam nets the winner – Lukébakio sees red
The second half began with Nemanja Radonjić looking lively on the left wing. The number 24 hit the side netting (52’) before Piątek was denied by Fährmann after another excellent dead ball from Plattenhardt (55’). It was the Pole’s final action as he limped from the field to be replaced by Jessic Ngankam soon after (58’). Santiago Ascacíbar and Dodi Lukébakio were also thrown on as Hertha looked for a go-ahead goal. Set-pieces continued to provide a threat for the Old Lady as Boyata was denied a second by the width of the post (63’). The reward arrived with a little over fifteen minutes still to play; Radonjić teed up the substitute Ngankam, who kept his cool in front of goal to fire home Hertha’s second. 2-1 and the comeback was complete (74’)! There was another nice moment for the academy as Michelbrink replaced Dilrosun to celebrate his Bundesliga debut. Radonjić almost got the goal his performance deserved as the game neared an end, but Fährmann reached out a hand to bat away the Serb's chipped effort (83’). Despite the missed chances, a second yellow card for Lukébakio (89’) and a late rally which saw Schalke hit the post twice within a matter of seconds, Hertha held on to claim a hugely important away win. It’s now seven games unbeaten for our boys, while the gap to automatic relegation in 17th place has been extended to five points!