U.S. defender Gregg Berhalter is in the final stages of negotiating an extension of his contract with German club Energie Cottbus, which is headed to the Second Division after a three-year stint in the top tier.

''The club plans to keep its core players and the chances of returning to the First Division look good,'' said Berhalter, who joined Cottbus one month into the season from Crystal Palace and has made 20 appearances.

''I plan on rebuilding the defense around [Vragel] da Silva and Berhalter,'' Cottbus coach Eduard Geyer told Kicker Magazine.

Berhalter is just one of the Americans in Germany facing relegation. Tony Sanneh, who has not played since the winter break because of a back injury, has had watch as his FC Nuremberg slipped to the 17th place, just one spot ahead of last-place Cottbus.

Nuremberg, which has replaced Coach Klaus Augenthaler with Wolfgang Wolff, was in 12th place at the winter break. With three games left, Nuremberg is six points deep in the relegation zone.

Steve Cherundolo, who helped Hannover win promotion to the First Division last season, is in danger of slipping back down. Hannover is in 14th place. Teams finishing 16th through 18th are relegated and Hannover is two points ahead of 16th place Bayer Leverkusen.

Hannover, which also includes American Conor Casey on its roster, finishes the season against Schalke (6th place), Borussia Moenchengladbach (15th) and Armenia Bielefeld (13th).

Cherundolo has played 30 games this season. Casey has played in three games, all off the bench.

In the Second Division, Corey Gibbs is in danger of being relegated twice in two seasons with St. Pauli, which dropped out of the First Division last season and is now in 17th place and five points in the relegation zone of the Second Division with three games left. Gibbs has seen action in 15 games during an injury-plagued season.

The bottom four teams of the 18-team Second Division drop to the Third Division. Eintracht Braunschweig, for whom Jacob Thomas plays forward, is in 16th place and three points in the relegation zone.

Two Americans play for a team that has a chance to move into the First Division. Mainz, with Grover Gibson and Mike Duhaney, is clinging to third-place, three points ahead of Greuther Fuerth. The top three teams win promotion.

Gibson has played in four games and Duhaney has played in three. Neither played in Monday's 3-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt.

Elsewhere in Germany, former U.S. international Tom Dooley was released as sport director of Third Division FC Saarbruecken.