The spectators are finally returning to the stadiums. And after a year of corona pandemic, which arena would be better suited for the second division season overture than the one “on” Schalke. Relegation here and there: passionate "Schalke, Schalke" choirs thundered from the stands to the players of FC Schalke 04. Even in the dosed form of almost 20,000 fans, the resonance space was almost as full as with 60,000 spectators and a sold-out house. Sports director Peter Knäbel got the traditional "attack" calls and the Steigerlied under the skin in any case. "Schalke is also enough with a lower dose," he said of the holiday mood before kick-off, "now football is complete again."

In keeping with the premiere of the lower house, the Royal Blues dueled against the Bundesliga dinosaurs of Hamburger SV, which for decades had been held to be insurmountable, who are now making the fourth attempt to finally return to the bright light of the First Bundesliga.

The start of the North Germans was as convincing as that of Schalke.

Yes, it was even a little better because HSV turned the game around decisively in the second section after the 0-1 deficit by Simon Terodde (7th minute) and by goals from Robert Glatzel (53rd), Moritz Heyer (86.) and Bakery Jatta (90.) won 3: 1 without deserving it.

Signs of lack of concentration

That they would still miss the second division shooter Terodde, who had migrated to FC Schalke, the people of Hamburg should have already suspected when he left. Earlier than expected they felt the unbroken goal danger of the 33-year-old center forward. When HSV hadn't even found their way into the game, Terodde was already there after Bülter's precise presentation and pushed the ball past goalkeeper Heuer-Fernandes into the right corner: his 143rd second division goal. But the people of Hamburg quickly recovered and put pressure on the Westphalians, who became more passive after a brisk start.

Wintzheimer could have equalized, but did not hit the ball while standing alone (14th). A sign of lack of concentration in crucial moments, which also the Terodde successor Glatzel radiated when he started quite indecisively after Flick's foul on Kinsombi when the penalty was due and then shot the ball so half-high and unplaced that Michael Langer, the representative of the am Coronavirus infected ferryman, was able to parry (27.). At halftime, the Schalke audience felt well entertained by a team that had started with nine new Schalke players, which seemed more harmonious and, above all, more determined than the desperate Gelsenkirchen relegated team from the previous season.

Since the equally ambitious Hamburg team, with their well-coordinated possession football, had long been an equal opponent, the equalization only surprised particularly die-hard Schalke players.

Glatzel made the 1: 1 with a dust goal after Leibold's free kick, which Langer had boxed from the Kreuzeck, and thus initiated a phase of open blows, in which Jattas Heber just missed his goal (54th), HSV keeper Heuer Fernandes the one-on-one duel with Ouwejan won (55th) and Terodde's degrees failed on the one hand to Heuer Fernandes and the second on the post (61st).

In the end, only Hamburgers rewarded themselves for their courageous performance when Heyer completed a remarkable attack to make it 2-1 and Jatta scored another goal.

Then it fell silent on Schalke.