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 3.
Borussia Dortmund 2-2 Heidenheim
Edin Terzic: “It’s hard to explain it. We’re going to talk about a few things now because we completely let this game slip away from us. In the first half, there were already a few things that we didn’t like, there were ball losses in our own half and then bad passes that led to counter-attacks.”
“In the second half, we were lucky once with a handball. After that, we recovered a bit, had three or four chances to score, but then missed them and let things get out of hand. In the end, you have to say that we beat ourselves.”
“These are simply things that must not happen to us if we want to have really big ambitions, because these things don’t happen to top teams. For us it happens again and again.”
Frank Schmidt: “Of course we wanted to avoid what happened at the beginning. Of course, if you’re already 1-0 behind after seven minutes, that doesn’t make it any easier. But when you immediately concede the second goal, a few thoughts go through your head. We still had two or three situations in the first half that we had to overcome. Then it was important for us to go into halftime. That gave us the opportunity to realign ourselves.
“I told the team that if we scored the next goal, there would still be something left. Then we even had a great chance with Tim, where he was almost free. But that was a signal to us that we can get our chances. Then came Dortmund’s phase in which they could have decided the game. Kevin Müller saved us there. Then we make the connection goal. We played it well there. Eren Dinkçi was rewarded for a very good game. Before that there were also a few crazy scenes with the goal not being given.
“Then we got the penalty. Tim Kleindienst had to wait almost eight minutes before he was finally allowed to shoot. But he scored confidently. I think we could have even scored another goal in one of the counterattack chances. On the other hand, BVB also hits the crossbar. If you are 2-0 behind as a promoted team in Dortmund and come back, then you definitely deserve it.”
Bayer Leverkusen 5-1 Darmstadt
Xabi Alonso: “It wasn’t easy for us. A 5-1 looks like a big difference, but Darmstadt defended very well in the first half and we only had a few spaces. We wanted to be patient, we took the lead, but we got the equalizer straight after. We discussed a few things at halftime and wanted to get Darmstadt’s defence moving more. We managed that well and after the 2-1 we controlled the game very well and scored more goals, which of course makes me very happy.”
Torsten Lieberknecht: “Congratulations to Leverkusen on their win. We saw two different halves. Before the break we did a lot of tactical things really well and also showed a good reaction to the 0-1 lead. Today we had to defend against a team with great quality, and we did that well in the first half. The 1:2 came much too early and with the 1:3 the barriers closed a little and the belief in getting something against a team like that faded a little.
“The 1:4 and 1:5 hurt, of course, but it’s part of the history of the game. Nevertheless, I saw things that I liked and that I will pass on to the boys.”
Hoffenheim 3-1 VfL Wolfsburg
Pellegrino Matarazzo: “We knew from the start that we needed a good defensive performance. Our formation was very offensive with two strikers in the wing positions. It took some time for us to gain a foothold in the game. Nevertheless, I was pleased that several players got involved in the game. That speaks for the morale of the team.
“We performed very maturely, especially in the second half. We didn’t allow any major chances to score until the last ten minutes and in the end we deserved to win.”
Niko Kovac: “We did really well in the first half and rightly took the lead. After that we failed to step up and conceded the equalizer before the break. The goal must not be conceded like this. In the second half we did very little forward, which wasn’t good. Apart from injury time, there wasn’t enough. That’s why we lost.”
Werder Bremen 4-0 Mainz
Ole Werner: “I’m happy for the team because they managed to put together a good performance and a good result. In Freiburg the performance was more than okay, today it was a bit better. And we were able to reward ourselves with a good result. We will need some time, but today we also saw what is possible if we work well as a team. It’s nice that we kept a clean sheet today.”
Martin Schmidt (sporting director): “It was a deserved win for Bremen, which could have been even bigger. We weren’t in the duels right from the start, and after losing the ball we gave the opponent huge space to switch, which they also took advantage of. We’re doing well We came into the break and were a bit more ready and aggressive. We got the 2-0 lead at this stage. There was nothing to be gained here today.”
Augsburg 2-2 VfL Bochum
Enrico Maaßen: “We took a different approach today, stood a little deeper and were less interested in possession of the ball. We still managed to take the lead twice. But then we concede the goals at the worst possible times.
“The game certainly doesn’t deserve a beauty award today and we have to manage to concede fewer goals, which is what we’ll be working on over the next few weeks. We really wanted to win the game, but in the end we now have a point.”
Thomas Letsch: “My conclusion about the game is twofold. On the one hand, I am absolutely satisfied and proud of the way the team performed here. I think we played a strong game and dominated the pitch for 90 minutes. On the other hand, in the end it’s about winning games, so the disappointment outweighs the disappointment.
“If you score two goals in Augsburg, then that has to be enough to take three points. Nevertheless, we recently played two strong games in a row and are taking the positive trend with us into the international break.”
VfB Stuttgart 5-0 Freiburg
Sebastian Hoeneß: “First of all, we have to be happy that we were not behind. Alex saved us from falling behind. Afterwards it was a very good performance from us. We were very efficient and got the game to our side. Against Freiburg, even with a lead behind you, it is important to stay alert and remain aggressive. That was also the credo during the break: We didn’t want to manage anything, we wanted to stay sharp.
“The 4-0 was the final push to get the game on our side. We are happy about this start to the season. It was a good team effort. We worked hard together and got inspiration from the bench. We have to continue to remain humble and clear, then we will be able to perform well.”
Christian Streich: “Congratulations to VfB on their victory. We started well but didn’t score. After that, we didn’t defend well several times, not individually and not as a group. Before the break we still had one and a half chances and were still hoping to get within 1:3 to make the game uneasy again. But VfB was superior to us in every respect today. We couldn’t resist.”
Borussia Mönchengladbach 1-2 Bayern Munich
Gerardo Seoane: “There is a lot of quality at Bayern. We wanted to leave them little space, make the rooms narrow and compact. In the end we ran out of gas. Every change had to be carefully considered because we have had to struggle with a number of injuries in the last few weeks. In the end it’s still annoying to concede a goal after a corner. We defended a lot of set pieces well, but in the end they prevailed.”
Thomas Tuchel: “The first half was a bit tough. In the second half it was more fluid, more aggressive and dominant. We were also very dangerous in the opposing penalty area. It was fun. It was important today. We played the best half this season. We created enough chances and deserved to win. Three wins at the start is very good. It feels good, we had good energy.”
Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 Köln
Dino Toppmöller: “We more than deserved the equaliser. This was our best performance [this season] in terms of controlling the game. We were well organised and combined well in attack. The lads attacked for the full 90 minutes and they all put in a great performance, including those who came on. I’m proud of the effort, commitment and how we performed as a group. You could tell from the sidelines that everyone on the pitch wanted to work their socks off for Eintracht Frankfurt.”
Steffen Baumgart: “It was a very intense game. We tried to resist it. Frankfurt’s goal was more than deserved. The timing of the goal is of course annoying, but if you look at the whole game, it is the right result. We have to work on playing more clearly going forward. In terms of running and fighting, it was good. We saw a strong Frankfurt team in terms of playfulness and positional play. And that’s exactly where we have to continue to work our way in.”
Union Berlin 0-3 RB Leipzig
Urs Fischer: “I saw a balanced game without many great opportunities on both sides. Leipzig certainly had a sharper blade than us. The team didn’t do badly, Leipzig were simply efficient and with one man less it was impossible to get anything.”
Marco Rose: “The first half was solid. We knew that it would be a close game. We worked hard across the pitch, even if we lacked a bit of precision at the start. However, it’s tough to find a way through against Union.
“Overall, we did well to keep our shape and sometimes, when you’re playing a team that’s hard to breakdown, what you need is just for someone to have a go from 18 meters out. It was important for us to take the lead because Union know how to win close games with just one move. We took on the fight and were able to control the game at the right moments. Overall, it was a very mature performance from us. We also scored some nice goals; if you ask me, our third should definitely be awarded Goal of the Month already!”
