1. FC Cologne | Baumgart: “I feel positive excitement”
On the ninth matchday, 1. FC Cologne will host Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga. Before the ball rolls against the Werkself on Sunday at 3:30 p.m., head coach Steffen Baumgart spoke at the press conference about the staff, stage fright before the game and the upcoming opponents.
FC head coach Steffen Baumgart on …
… the personal: “Ellyes Skhiri will still be out. Niklas Hauptmann, who trained completely with the team last week, was taken out of training again this week. His illness has not yet completely cured, which is why we decided to take a break from him. Otherwise all the boys are available. “
… the upcoming opponent: “We’re up against one of the best teams in Germany, even if they lost a lot to Bayern Munich last weekend. YOU have high speed and good shift play with very high quality. If we want to survive, we have to work against it as a team with everything we have. We have to bring virtues like intensity and courage to the court. Then it’s about looking forward to the duel. We have 50,000 fans in the RheinEnergieSTADION. I hope that Cologne will support us until the last minute and that we can kindle the fire on the pitch. I hope it will be a peaceful and atmospheric game. I am looking forward.”
… the quotes from Rudi Völler: “I read in the article that he appreciates the work that we do here in Cologne. The thing about gluing is such a subordinate clause, as was the case with me when I made the comment about the audience. Because that’s not the point. It’s about sport, it’s about three points. That is what we should focus on. We want to stay unbeaten at home. I think that Rudi Völler and I respect each other, at least I do. I am allowed to play against him and I consider him to be one of the best strikers we have ever had. ”
… a possible list: “You are spoiled for choice when it comes to the line-up in central defense. We have to watch out for the Leverkusen’s speed. We’re considering playing with a six or two, but that has something to do with alignment too. We want to stay true to our style of play and put our opponents under pressure early on. It will be difficult when Leverkusen finds the way forward. It’s about a lot of unity and not about who is playing in central defense. I have a solution in mind, but I’ll keep it to myself. “
… the motivation for the party on Sunday: “You don’t have to make it particularly hot. There’s a lot of excitement involved, including stage fright. I think that’s part of it. Now I’m not the cool guy that leaves that indifferent. I feel a positive excitement. I don’t have the feeling that I have to heat the guys up. After the Hoffenheim game, we expect a lot to work through. We have analyzed what we did not succeed. We want to develop further, that’s what we worked on in training. “
… working in a collective: “I think that in football it always depends on the collective. Especially when the team doesn’t just live off one player, as is the case with us. We have shown in many games that we acted together and had some good actions. If we don’t do it, things won’t go well because we’re not in the game. Except for the goal chances, we weren’t far from Hoffenheim. In some situations it didn’t go well. But you don’t have to talk about it with the individual, but as a team. Therefore, it is important that we get this collective thinking back and focus on it again and again. Especially against teams that have a higher quality, you can only survive as a collective. “
… Florian Wirtz: “First of all, his education, which he enjoyed, makes him strong. Second, he plays in a very good team, which again suits his qualities. Florian is someone who has extraordinary talent, especially when it comes to the game. The way he plays the last few balls – not many can do that. If he gets up to speed, he’ll be able to put the other players at the front of the scene. He also has a very good degree. We’re talking about an exceptional footballer. It’s nice to see him. It goes without saying that we would have preferred to see him here. He chose this route. We should stop crying about it, but keep going on our way. We have many good talents in our club, whom we will continue to train and integrate with us. “