What is suddenly going on with Wolfsburg? The weak start of the second half of the season is more and more forgotten by the Lower Saxony. When it comes to the round of 16 in the Europa League, VfL convinces and shines in phases. The offensive is becoming more and more variable.
Malmö (dpa) - In the end, only around 1,700 party-mad Wolfsburg fans could be heard in the arena of Malmö. "Oh, how nice it is" and "European Cup", the VfL fans sang and celebrated their first move into an international round of 16 since 2016.
After the mood of crisis and sadness at the beginning of the year, the team of coach Oliver Glasner is fun again for their fans. And suddenly it's about something again.
After the convincing and sometimes even glamorous appearances of the past few weeks, the Wolfsburg players in the Bundesliga are back at the European Cup places before the game at Union Berlin on Sunday (1.30 p.m. / Sky). In the Europa League, fans can continue to dream of great trips and successes after the 3-0 (1-0) win at Malmö FF.
In the hometown of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, VfL impressed with their commitment, struggle and, above all, great enthusiasm in the second half. "A big compliment to the players for the performance they showed here in the Malmo cauldron," said the obviously satisfied Glasner. Sports director Jörg Schmadtke spoke of a "never endangered" progress. "Malmo has an experienced squad, but it seemed that they had lost quality. But we did really well." He was right there.
Josip Brekalo (42nd minute), Yannick Gerhardt (65th) and João Victor (69th) scored the safe victory. The Swedes, who are actually known for their home strength, hardly embarrassed the Wolfsburgers. VfL was the first German team to remain undefeated in a Europa League away game for the ninth time in a row.
The strong development of the wolves with two wins and 7-0 goals within five days is astonishing. Less than five weeks ago, the Lower Saxony Hertha BSC lost 1-2 at home. Schmadtke suggested a tactical restart in front of running television cameras and said a few days later that it looked "as if we had made it too comfortable". The criticism worked. Wolfsburg has won five of the last six competitive matches, and the VW Club's appearances in football are getting better and better.
While center forward Wout Weghorst was often the sole entertainer in the first half of the season, Josip Brekalo, Admir Mehmedi or Renato Steffen now ensure speed and additional goal danger in the outside positions. The victory in Malmö stirs up anticipation of what may come - including other European parties.
