Eintracht Braunschweig fact file
Wednesday, 01. February 2017, 19:03 Uhr
The Boys in Brown travel to Eintracht Braunschweig for the first away game of the second half of the season on Sunday (kick-off: 1330 CET). As always, we've collected a few facts on our forthcoming opponents.
Faith in the squad
Every team in the second division made changes to the squad during the winter break. Or did they? The answer is no. Eintracht Braunschweig were the only club to stick with the group they started with in summer. "We don't see the need," said director of sport Marc Arnold back in November. "We've had an outstanding first half of the season and have led the table since matchday three. These lads have earned our trust for the second half of the season as well."
Late delight
While the Boys in Brown suffered a late defeat against VfB Stuttgart last weekend, Eintracht managed to salvage a point at the death away to Kickers Würzburg. In the second minute of time added-on Christoffer Nyman was in the right place at the right time to level the scores from a corner and secure a 1-1 draw.
Veteran
Jan-Philipp Kalla has worn the brown-and-white shirt since the summer of 2003. His counterpart at Braunschweig is Ken Reichel. The Berlin-born full-back joined Eintracht from Hamburger SV II in mid-2007 and has made 265 competitive appearances for the senior side since then, racking up 15 goals and 25 assists along the way. Reichel has been an ever-present this term apart from the season opener, when he served a one-match ban booking for a sending-off on the final day of the 2015/16 season. Only goalkeeper Jasmin Fejzic, who has not missed a single minute, and striker Domi Kumbela (76 minutes) have amassed more minutes for Braunschweig in the current campaign.
Fortress Braunschweig
The main reason Braunschweig are where they are in the table is their home form. Torsten Lieberknecht's side have taken 25 points out of 27 in front of their own fans so far. The only team to come away with a point are Hannover 96, who claimed a 2-2 draw on matchday 12.
Crosses galore
With 18 matches played, Erzgebirge Aue have hit the more crosses than any other second-division team. The Violets have put the ball into the opposition penalty box 244 times in all, 78 times from the left flank and 166 from the right. Braunschweig follow in second place alongside Fortuna Düsseldorf with 110 balls in from the right and 100 from the left.
Photo: DFL
