WCC Final

Dan Wallace’s much improved D2 side came out on top in a two-legged affair with D1 PSG in what could hardly have been a tighter couple of games.

1st leg

PSG manager Malcolm must have thought he had come away with a great result with a 0-0 draw in Berlin, but the lack of an away goal proved costly in the end.

2nd leg

And it was Hertha who duly scored that crucial away goal, Mario Mandzukic equalising Julian Weigl’s opener with just under an hour played.

Man of the Match Marco Reus provided the match-winning performance and assist.

A fantastic win for Hertha, who wrote their name into the record books by becoming the first non-D1 team to win the World Club Cup (although the new tournament format helped with that somewhat).

Hertha rounded off the season with a stunning playoff victory in the league to secure D1 football for the first time in the club’s history to cap a magnificent campaign.

PSG manager Malcolm finished in a club record third place in D1, before switching to a new challenge with World Club Shield finalists D5 Augsburg for next season.

WCS Final

D5 Augsburg contested the Shield Final in the absence of a winner from the D4 Divisional tournament.

1st leg

Attack heavy Augsburg dominated the 1st leg in Bavaria with three first half goals.

They ran out of steam, though, and conceded what proved to be a fatal late second goal to give Gladbach two precious away goals.

2nd leg

Incredibly, Augsburg boss Johns quit the club prior to the second leg declaring in a statement issued by the club that:

When I joined the club I was excited to develop the strong youth setup that previous manager Ivan Anic had built, and also to bring in some quality and experience to take us up the table. Unfortunately, I didn’t read the small print in the contract which said that I had to wear the manager’s special lederhosen that turned out to be a couple of sizes too small for me. They created all kinds of problems for me. I hope to be back in six months….

Under caretaker manager Steve Coppell, Augsburg’s players looked completely demoralised and outplayed, and a 1-0 defeat flattered them.

Another away goals victory, and another World Club winner who went on to win their playoff final in the league, securing D2 football next season.

Manager Attila Olah has since joined Internacional in D1, while former Swansea, PSV, Fiorentina and CSKA Moscow boss Lee Adams takes the reigns at Gladbach.