The final whistle blows, and the dust settles on the previous ninety minutes. But the press soon wants to get the opinions from the Bundesliga trainers whether they have won, lost, or drawn. Here’s what they had to say following matchday 31.
Bayer Leverkusen 1-2 Köln
Xabi Alonso: “Today wasn’t our best game, we didn’t have that much control. They weren’t any better than us, but we didn’t defend the goals well. We had chances, but that wasn’t enough. The defeat hurts.
“The game was very hectic. This is something we need to learn and do better. A draw would have been fair from my point of view. Now we have more time to prepare for Rome. Hopefully we’ll do better there than we did today. A semi-final in the Europa League is something very special for the club.”
Steffen Baumgart: “We are happy about the victory. We played well and, in my opinion, deserved to win. I told the lads that we have to stay calm and clear-headed. In the emotional scenes, I was too far away and couldn’t intervene anymore. Davie is working well and was rewarded for that today. The goals were also a good team effort. Davie then put the crosses in.”
Mainz 2-3 Schalke
Bo Svensson: “It was a big decision from the referee at the end, who in my opinion, made the wrong decision. But we were missing something today, especially in the first half. Schalke had more of a grip on the contest, had the better chances and we didn’t look very good.
“We changed the system after the break but we didn’t capitalise on the good phase after we made it 1-1. We gave away a very annoying goal. We then found ourselves under pressure and invited pressure from our opponents.”
Thomas Reis: “We’re over the moon to have gotten the three points. We started the game well. Mainz had a good chance to score first, but Alexander Schwolow made a great reaction save. Then we took the lead and could even have gone 2-0 up through Kenan Karaman. We knew that Mainz would improve in the second half.
“It’s frustrating to have conceded from a set-piece. Mainz were upping the pressure, but luckily we managed to make it 2-1. Their free-kick to level the scores again was world-class. We never stopped believing that we could win and fortunately were able to get the all-important third goal from a penalty.”
Freiburg 0-1 RB Leipzig
Christian Streich: “We were lucky at the beginning. You can’t defend everything because they play it so well. Later we were unlucky when we conceded a goal, it was unlucky. We were also unlucky with the decision with Haidara. It’s a counterattack, it’s difficult to accept.
“We gave everything. We’re currently unable to get a point against teams like Leipzig and Bayern. Of course it’s not undeserved for Leipzig.”
Marco Rose: “That was an important win for us. As expected, the game went a bit differently than on Tuesday. Freiburg were compact and strong in tackles and geared towards countering. It was clear that we needed patience and good counterattack protection today. Right from the start we had two or three dangerous situations and Timo had a big chance, we didn’t score and then the game became more and more open overall.
“We then had a lot of control, but we didn’t have any great chances to score. In the second half we finally won the game with a very consistent attack into the box via Kevko. From the back, as in this intensive, difficult week, we threw everything in again. We are very happy about the hard-earned victory.”
Hoffenheim 3-1 Eintracht Frankfurt
Pellegrino Matarazzo: “We showed what we wanted to show in the first half. In the second half we were outnumbered for a long time, so we showed a lot of heart. Frankfurt was variable in structure and often moved the game, so we had to run a lot. It’s a deserved win and I’m glad the boys got their reward.
“Grischa was actually only supposed to play 60 minutes today, but he was too important to be substituted today. That should show his importance for this team. Ermin Bičakčić is in a really strong phase at the moment, his performance today was no coincidence. He’s a real defender, he helped us a lot today. We can deal with pressure situations, we’ve shown that several times. The boys want it, you can feel that.”
Oliver Glasner: “Congratulations to Pellegrino Matarazzo and TSG Hoffenheim on the win. We concede too many easy goals, especially away from home. It’s not always possible to concede two or three goals with an energetic performance – as was the case on Wednesday in the cup. We didn’t defend well enough and Hoffenheim scored three goals with the first four chances. That was way too easy. It wears you down when you’re always chasing a deficit.
“The boys tried everything again, made the connection and started after the red card. There were a few more chances, but we didn’t always find the right tools. It’s a problem we just can’t get a grip on.”
Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-0 VfL Bochum
Daniel Farke: “The win does us good, not just in terms of the table, but also for our confidence and the team spirit. We had to deliver after the games against Union and Stuttgart, particularly going forward. We produced a lot more sprints and runs in deep and looked a lot better in attack. We needed 20 minutes to get going in the first half, but we grew into the game and scored a great goal.
“We let a number of chances go begging after that though. Bochum threw everything at us in the second half, and it was important to keep them at bay. All in all, I’m very happy, even if we should have scored a goal or two more. The most pleasing thing is that we kept a clean sheet again.
Thomas Letsch: “Regardless of the result, I’m annoyed with our performance in the last 20 minutes of the first half. It was an even and fairly uneventful game until then. We hadn’t given much away, but we also hadn’t created much ourselves. Then we gave our opponents confidence through a mistake, which led to the atmosphere picking up in the stadium and eventually their goal. That was when we let the game get away from us.
“We put them under pressure in the second half, but we didn’t take our chances. We just didn’t do enough today. We didn’t deliver the performance that was needed to come away with a result.
Augsburg 1-0 Union Berlin
Enrico Maaßen: “I’m very, very happy and proud of my team that we were able to win this difficult game today. We were finally able to break the streak and get three points again, this time luck was on our side. But the way we played today doesn’t make the win undeserved. We started the game very well, scored a goal worth seeing and defended set pieces against us.
“It was a tour de force and we improved our starting position, but nothing more. I’m particularly happy for our fans, the stadium exploded today. We now have a difficult game in Bochum, where everything will be at stake. We know what to expect and want to do more.”
Urs Fischer: “When you win, you usually deserve it – but today it was an unnecessary and annoying defeat for us. My team played a great game in the first half, but when we conceded a goal shortly after the break we didn’t pay close attention and let ourselves be caught too easily.
“After that, the team was a bit unsure, only in the last 20 minutes we were able to generate pressure again. But if you don’t score and you’re not careful, you’re a loser. Of course, that annoys us.”
Hertha Berlin 2-1 VfB Stuttgart
Pal Dardai: “I’m very happy with the first half. The way the team steered the opponent where we wanted to go. In In the second half we gave the opponent space, you should do good counterattacks, but we don’t get a finish, if we can’t even counterattack then it will be difficult. 3-1, cover it up and the coach can sit down and enjoying the game, but it wasn’t like that. Stuttgart risked everything. But the lads defended with passion.”
Sebastian Hoeneß: “We are very disappointed with the defeat. We missed taking an important step today. However, I don’t want to blame my team. The initial situation was challenging. We had an intense game on Wednesday, Schalke’s result from yesterday plays a role and then we had to replace one or two players or we had players who weren’t quite up to par. It is important for me to emphasize that these are not excuses.
“It’s just situations that influence such a game. And then you have to have a certain flow of play in a game like that. It was extremely unfavourable for us. We have the first chance of the game through Serhou. It would have been important to take the lead. But then Hertha succeeded. After that we had the game we had hoped for, had more control and the positions we wanted. That’s how we create the equalizer that we should have gone into the break with.
“The 1-2 made it brutally difficult given Hertha’s ability to defend deeply and diligently. Against such an opponent you need a certain freshness and clarity, which we missed. We invested a lot, didn’t allow the opponent any more chances, but weren’t able to develop any penetrating power. In the end there is a result that hurts us, but does not knock us down. We will analyse the game clearly and come into the game fresher and clearer against Leverkusen.”
Werder Bremen 1-2 Bayern Munich
Ole Werner: “Today’s game was very, very positive. We defended passionately and played courageously up front. The only thing we lacked today was callousness in front of goal, but that’s exactly what you need if you want to win against Bayern. Overall we played a very good game, even if we could have done better. Still, there’s no reason to walk around with your head down.”
Thomas Tuchel: “I’m happy that we won and happy with the result. It was a deserved win and we played confidently until the last five minutes. We could have led higher earlier. Now we can breathe deeply for two days before we prepare for Schalke. There is good character in the team. Now it’s about bringing the lead in the table over the line.”
Borussia Dortmund 6-0 VfL Wolfsburg
Edin Terzic: “We produced an absolute top performance from start to finish and not only scored many nice goals but also kept a clean sheet as a team. It was great to watch the way the lads played football with each other. Then it’s difficult for any opponent, especially when we’re playing here in our own stadium. This was a good step. If we go into the remaining three matches with the same willingness, we’ll have good chances of picking up wins then too.”
Niko Kovac: ““That was exactly what we didn’t want today. We played without conviction in our challenges and without bite, so we didn’t stand a chance. The 6-0 defeat was just what we deserved. My team will have to show their true colours in the coming weeks.”
