Overview
- Rostock hosts Erzgebirge Aue on Saturday to open the second half, with Daniel Brinkmann indicating minimal changes and no pregame experimentation.
- Hansa sits fifth with a points-per-game rate just under 1.7, short of the roughly 1.8 historically required for direct promotion.
- The team enters the restart unbeaten in ten league matches, with six wins and four draws since a September loss to Cottbus.
- Aue travels in 16th place and will start 22-year-old Louis Lord in goal, leaving longtime captain Martin Männel on the bench despite his fitness.
- Rostock signals contentment with its squad as rivals Duisburg, Essen and Osnabrück reinforce, and a home win could lift Hansa into the top three if others slip.