After the annoying defeat in Hanover, influenced by fan protests, SpVgg Greuther Fürth took a little longer to get into derby shape. "With all the circumstances surrounding it, it took us a little while to really get into the derby mood in training," said coach Alexander Zorniger two days before the game on Sunday (1.30pm/Sky) against 1. FC Nürnberg. "Now the boys are here - that's the most important thing. We're expecting a high-intensity game against an opponent who has footballing quality."
The fan protests in German soccer, which are no longer likely to take place for this reason after the investors' withdrawal, had particularly upset Zorniger and his young team were thrown off their stride in the 2-1 defeat in Hanover. "I'm glad to God that there's a chance that a game can be played at the weekend with normal breaks, which are football-specific. I think that would be great," said Zorniger. His players had previously been "unhappy". Now things could be different.
When asked what circumstances he was referring to when he made the derby temperature statement, Zorniger joked. "It's the weather, the vacation plans for next year that haven't been finalized yet or, alternatively, the history of soccer over the last four weeks."
His team had recently suffered three consecutive defeats. "The three defeats hurt us," said Zorniger. But stories like that don't matter in the derby. "For cloverleaf fans and club fans, these are the two most important individual games of the year - as long as you're not in the cup final, perhaps," said Zorniger.
In terms of overall results, FCN have the better record, but in recent years things have looked a little different: The club have won just four of the last 27 Franconian derbies across all competitions.
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