The game against Arminia Bielefeld on the 15th of September has been postponed until the 28th of September (18:00 PM) due to changes in the schedule of the Champions League game Bayern Muenchen vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Hannover equalized Dortmund 29th minute lead in second half injury time as Hannovers defender Mertesacker scored with a header.

Head coach Ewald Lienen played a very offensive strategy (a 4-3-3 formation) with the American Clint Mathis up front. Defensive midfielder Christoph Dabrowski was unavailable to play due to injury. Portuguese playmaker Ricardo Sousa made his debut for Hannover in the starting lineup. For Dortmund Christian Wörns was picked instead of Bergdölmo´.

Hannover began very motivated and had two chances in the first 20 minutes. In the 3rd minute Micheal Tarnat surprised Dortmunds defender Jensen with a 40-meter pass, from the left to the right wing, to Clint Mathis who had a go from 10 meters, but Dortmunds goalkeeper Guillaume Warmuz was up to it and saved.

In the 19th minute there was almost a repeat of 3rd minute, as this time Hannovers Altin Lala made the pass to Sousa, but yet again Warmuz was up to it.

From now on Dortmund dominated the game and saw their first chance wasted in the 23rd minute, as Dortmunds Ewerthon missed the ball 10 meters from goal. Two minutes later Czech Thomas Rosicky headed the ball over the bar from 8 meters, after being set up by Evanilson.

In the 29th minute Rosicky made no mistake and handed Dortmund the lead after a 20 meter shot, passing between four Hannover defenders on its way in near the left post. Dortmund then shifted into a lower gear and waited to counter attack. Hannovers last effort in the first half was on 39 minutes as Sousa shot from long range over the bar.

The second half began where the first ended and Hannover saw their first chance in the 54th minute when Stajner crossed from outside the box to Sousa who, like Ewerthon in the first half, missed the ball. On the counter attack Ewerthons shot, six meters out and from a tight angle, was saved by Hannovers goalkeeper Enke.

The next two chances belonged to Dortmund. The first on 61 minutes from Dede and the second on 68 minutes, this time it was Sunday Olisehs turn. In the 71st minute Hannovers Ricardo Sousa shot a well positioned free-kick, from outside of the box, over the bar.

Hannover was on the lucky side in the 82nd minute as Dortmunds Jan Kollers shot hit the left post from 12 meters out. US defender Steven Cherundolo was out of poisition enabling Koller to trick the offside trap.

Hannover used its last chance in injury time. As Leandro crossed the ball from a corner, every single Hannover player, including keeper Robert Enke was in the Dortmund box waiting. Dortmunds goalkeeper Guillaume Warmuz missed the ball and Koller didn’t jump high enough as Hannovers Mertesacker headed the ball into the lower right corner. As the Hannover players and fans celebrated the goal, the referee blew the final whistle. The game ended in a one all draw.

It was a well earned point for Hannover as defender Per Mertesacker scored his first Bundesliga goal, Ricardo Sousa had a good debut game and Julian de Guzman showed a great running performance. Hannover now has two homes games against SC Freiburg and Arminia Bielefeld.

Statistics

Borussia Dortmund: Warmuz - Evanilson, Demel, Wörns, N. Jensen - Oliseh, Kehl, Rosicky, Dede - Ewerthon (90. Gambino), Koller

Hannover 96 Enke - Cherundolo, Mertesacker, Zuraw, Tarnat - Lala, de Guzman - Mathis (65. Christiansen), Sousa (80. Krupnikovic) - Stajner, Stendel (65. Leandro)

Goals: 1:0 Rosicky (29.), 1:1 Mertesacker (90+2)

Yellow: Oliseh, Dede, Jensen / de Guzman

Spectators: 74.000

Picture: Stefan Zwing

Hannover 96 defender Steven Cherundolo talked with 96soccer.com about the season, the US Nats, the AWD Areana and a lot more.

Stay tuned for more...

To download a file, right-click the mp3 link and select save link as... on your computer.

Steven Cherundolo says hello to 96soccer.com:
1. MP3-file: right-click for download here (53 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about having no game this week, because the AWD Arena is not finished yet:
2. MP3-file: right-click for download here (78 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the goal for the season :
3. MP3-file: right-click for download here (118 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the US Nats against Jamaica next week:
4. MP3-file: right-click for download here (125 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the media pressure in Germany compared to the US:
5. MP3-file: right-click for download here (208 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the experience playing abroad and the differences to the US:
6. MP3-file: right-click for download here (249 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about Adu and Donavan:
7. MP3-file: right-click for download here (55 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about Clint Mathis:
8. MP3-file: right-click for download here (77 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the AWD Arena:
9. MP3-file: right-click for download here (149 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the "FIFA WORLD CUP 2006" in Germany part I:
10. MP3-file: right-click for download here (120 kb).

Steven Cherundolo about the "FIFA WORLD CUP 2006" in Germany part II:
11. MP3-file: right-click for download here (80 kb).


Visit Steve's website at: http://www.cherundolo.de/

You can order a Hannover 96 Jersey of Steven Cherundolo or other players here.

Picture: Bert Pickert

Yesterday Hannover won the first game of the German cup (DFB Pokal) against VfR Neumünster (4th league) 3:0. Hannover dominated the whole game and went ahead in the 23rd through a header by Tarnat. In the second half (53rd) the US International Steven Cherundolo scored from 18 meters to 2:0. In the 86th Daniel Stendel scored to the final result 3:0 (setup by Roman Wallner).

Hannover 96 will be playing the next match on the 21st/22nd of September against FC Energie Cottbus (on the road).

Stats:
VfR Neumünster: Friedrichs - Reibe (55. Celik, 78. Jahnsen), Fossi, Zenker, Lass - Drewes, Ruzic (55. Blank), Naciri, Westphal - Kilicaslan, Cehic
Hannover 96: Enke - Cherundolo, Mertesacker, Zuraw, Tarnat - Lala, Dabrowski, Krupnikovic - Barnetta (61. Schröter), Christiansen (75. Wallner), Leandro (61. Stendel)

Goals: 0:1 Tarnat (23.), 0:2 Cherundolo (53.), 0:3 Stendel (86.)
Spectators: 3.658
Referee: Fröhlich (Berlin)

Picture: Stefan Zwing

The friendly match against RKC Waalwijk was canceled. Hannover 96 will be playing against Alemannia Aachen.

Friendlies:
08/17/04 TSV Landesbergen (Landesbergen), 19:00 PM
09/03/04 Alemannia Aachen (Alfeld), 18:30 PM

Hannover 96 plays 2 more friendlies:

08/17/04 TSV Landesbergen, 19:00 PM
09/03/04 RKC Waalwijk, 18:30 PM

New in the shop: Bandanas (EUR 10.00). Click here


You can now order "Hannover 96 Authentic Replica Home Jerseys 2004/2005" from each player (name and number on the back). We are shipping worldwide (as registered post). Click here

Over 3000 fans came yesterday to the official opening of the season from Hannover 96 to the Eilenriedestadion, while Hannover won a friendly match 1:0 against Polonia Warschau.

















Thomas Christiansen scored in the 72nd to the final result 1:0. Hannover dominated especially the first half playing with their A-team. Steven Cherundolo had good scenes in the offense with Stajner. In the second half Ewald Lienen subbed a few players because 5 players were nominated for international appereances. When Swiss Tranquillo Barnetta came in (63rd) he refreshed the game and set up the goal with Stendel.

Hannover 96: Enke - Cherundolo (46. Schröter), Mertesacker (63. Schneider), Zuraw, Tarnat - Lala, de Guzman (46. Dabrowski), Krupnikovic (63. Sousa) - Stajner (46. Stendel), Wallner (46. Christiansen), Leandro (63. Barnetta)
Polonia Warschau: Banaszynski (70. Kieszek) - Szymanek, Lukasiewicz, Udarevic (35. Cichon), Jakosz - Golaszewski, Stokowiec (65. Mazurkiewic), Dzwigala (65. Glowacki) - Olszar (46. Jarosiewicz), Golos, Kluzek
Goals: 1:0 Christiansen (72.)

Yellow: Tarnat, Lala, Christiansen / Udarevic, Jakosz
Spectators: 3.212
Referee: Peter Gagelmann

Pictures: 96soccer.com

Five Hannover 96 players have been nominated for the games next week:

Per Mertesacker: at the U 21 Germany vs. Lithuania
Roman Wallner: Austria vs. Germany
Julian de Guzman: Canada vs. Guatemala
Steven Cherundolo: USA vs. Jamaica
Altin Lala: Albania vs. Cyprus

Hannover 96 won today 8:0 against TSV Havelse in a friendly match. Roman Wallner was the best scorer on the field (3 goals). The other goals were netted by Daniel Stendel (2), Thomas Christiansen, Vladimir But and Ricardo Sousa (picture).

Hannover 96: Juric- Stefulj (75. Diouf), Vinicius, Schneider - But, Krupnikovic, Mathis (83. Wolf), Sousa (75. Schinner) - Stendel (75. Montabell), Christiansen, Wallner

Goals: 0:1 Stendel (5.), 0:2 Wallner (6.), 0:3 Wallner (18.), 0:4 Christiansen (20.), 0:5 But (31.), 0:6 Sousa (35.), 0:7 Stendel (40.), 0:8 Wallner (61.)

Spectators: 2000

Picture: Stefan Zwing

Hannover 96 has lost their season opener 2:1 after yet another in a long string of late game collapses, conceding an injury time winner.




Although Hannover dominated the game throughout, taking an early 15th minute lead, Leverkusen was spared by a Bernd Schneider equalizer in the 49th and the game winner from Franca in second half injury time.

Head coach Ewald Lienen employed with a 4-3-2-1 formation with Silvio Schröter and Leandro playing on the wings and surprisingly, Czech Jiri Stajner at forward.

American striker Clint Mathis was unavailable due to a calf muscle strain.

Hannover began very motivated and saw many chances in the first 15 minutes. With the match barely a minute old, a Michael Tarnat free kick from 30 yards sailed just over the bar.

In the 8th Leandro missed a header perfectly set up by Albanian midfielder Altin Lala from the right wing, and barely 2 minutes later, after a brilliant ball from Stajner, the Brazilian tested Bayer keeper Jörg Butt from 20 yards, but the keeper was just able to palm it away to safety.

In the 15th Hannover's persistence paid off.

After a Juan foul on the active Stajner resulted in a free kick, Tarnat stepped up and hammered home from 29 yards staking Lienen's side to the deserved 1-0 lead.

Six minutes later with Hannover having another free kick from nearly the same position, Schröter failed to convert the golden opportunity due to the well positioned wall.

Leverkusen didn't register a shot on goal in the first half. With Hannover playing with a very compact midfield of Lala, Christoph Dabrowski and Julian de Guzman in front of the four man defense Bayer was unable to mount any sort of attack.

In the second half Leverkusen coach Klaus Augenthaler brought on Jacek Krzynowek and Daniel Bierofka for Paul Frier and Marko Babic, while Lienen didn't make any changes.

In the 49th Leverkusen equalized against the run of play via a Bernd Schneider's strike. Franca who had beaten an out of position Steve Cherundolo on the left wing, played a clever ball through the defense to the German international who scored easily from 11 yards.

After the opportunistic goal, Leverkusen had two chances by Dimitar Berbatov in the 58th and the 63rd, with Hannover keeper Robert Enke doing well to parry the ball away on the latter attempt.

Seeing the tide shifting, Lienen tried playing more offensively and subbed three players. Ricardo Sousa, Daniel Stendel and Thomas Christiansen came in for Schröter, Leandro and Stajner.

The changes seemed to have lit a fire under Hannover, and they returned to their early domination.

In the 76th a dangerous by Sousa free kick from a tight angle hit the crossbar, and four minutes later after having beaten Nowotny in the box, Stendel shot into the left side netting with only Butt to beat. In the 81st a Christiansen shot was cleared off the line by a Leverkusen defender.

In the last minute of injury time, with winning a well earned road point nearly in hand, Hannover was bitten yet again by the opposition's final attack.

After a nice combination between Berbatov, Robson Ponte and Schneider who had beaten the Hannover defense, Franca stunned Hannover with the winner.

Although Hannover played well in defeat, it was little solace for the head coach. "We did enough to earn one point, so losing this game is bitter," Lienen said after the match.

While Lienen tactics did well, staying very compact in the midfield and stifling the Leverkusen attack, Hannover was left to rue their finishing woes.

New Hannover goalkeeper Enke played well in his debut and exuded a sense of secureness while Canadian Julian de Guzman and Stajner were very active and involved in the offense.

STATS

Lineups
Bayer 04 Leverkusen: Butt - Juan (75. Placente), Nowotny, Roque Junior - Freier (46. Bierofka), Schneider, Ramelow, Ponte, Babic (46. Krzynowek) - Berbatov, Franca
Hannover 96: Enke - Cherundolo, Mertesacker, Zuraw, Tarnat - Lala, Dabrowski, de Guzman, Schröter (64. Sousa), Leandro (64.Stendel) - Stajner (70. Christiansen)

Goals: 0:1 Tarnat (15.), 1:1 Schneider (49.), 2:1 Franca (91.)
Yellow: Nowotny, Ponte / de Guzman, Lala, Sousa
Referee: Dr. Xaver Wack
Spectators: 22.500

Picture: Stefan Zwing

Ewald Lienen nominated the following 18 players for the roster at the game against Leverkusen (tomorrow 15:30 PM):

Enke, Juric, Cherundolo, Mertesacker, Zuraw, Schneider, Tarnat, Schröter, Lala, Dabrowski, de Guzman, Sousa, But, Stendel, Leandro, Christiansen, Stajner and Wallner.

Today at practice Steven Cherundolo talked with 96soccer.com about the Bundesliga start and the game against Leverkusen.

Click for download the MP3-file here (188 Kb).

Today at the press conference Ewald Lienen talked about Clint Mathis and his situation:

After pulling calf muscle in Thursday's preseason friendly with Bulgarian side ZSK Sofia, Hannover striker Clint Mathis looks doubtful for the season opener against Bayer Leverkusen on Saturday.

"We are lucky, that it is a minor injury, but rather, a muscle problem. He couldn't take part in practice from Sunday to Tuesday, so playing in Leverkusen for Clint is too early," head coach Ewald Lienen said at today's press conference.

"It would change if he did participate at practice in the last four weeks. He practiced for just two weeks and then he picked up an injury in the last game and hasn't taken part at practice since. So we can't say that he is ready for the Bundesliga opener."

Clint Mathis started practicing today after he picked up an injury (pulled muscle) in the game against ZSK Sofia. He started with running today. The coach Ewald Lienen said: "Clint has not much experience with injuries. Maybe he did overinterpret his injury". On Thursday Mathis will start practicing with the team again.

At practicing again: Tranquillo Barnetta (on the picture with Clint Mathis).

The second Bundesliga club LR Ahlen has signed former Hannover 96 forward Stanko Svitlica. He will be on a loan until the end of this season. He has scored 1 goal for the reds.