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 21.
Borussia Dortmund 3-0 Freiburg
Edin Terzic: “We saw our best performance of 2024 today. We took control from the beginning. It was not easy to keep up the rhythm due to the long interruption to the match in the first period. We kept Freiburg at bay very well, we were very focused when defending set-pieces and on the ball there was only one phase that we weren’t satisfied with.
“Otherwise, I thought we were very clear, very disciplined and very mature. Unfortunately, we just couldn’t score the third goal sooner, so the game remained somewhat open. Five games, only one goal conceded, and that was an own goal – that’s the foundation.”
Christian Streich: “You have to be very efficient in Dortmund, which we didn’t manage. The first half was ok, but Dortmund were then also simply too good for us. We didn’t play at our best. There were phases where it wasn’t so bad. In the end, though, we went without any chances. We also often found ourselves in dangerous situations, but the final pass was often missing.”
Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 VfL Bochum
Dino Toppmöller: “We started the game well and scored the goal, which was played very well. We always wanted to play balls behind the chain, and we managed to do that at that moment. We get the equaliser through a long ball that we have no control over. We then had no control of the second balls until the break and were too far apart in the centre.
“In the second half we had good energy on the pitch and in the wild phase we got the crowd going, who gave us great support. We won the 50:50 duels, put the balls into the box and had five top-class chances, the opponents two or three.
“The result may be fair. I liked the team’s reaction after the Cologne game, but the result is not satisfactory. We had many chances to win the game in our favour. There were some situations that we had to clean up. After the game I said to the team that the second half had to be about energy and power.”
Thomas Letsch: “Immediately after the game it felt like more was possible. With some distance I also see the second half, in which the game could have gone either way. There was a short, wild phase that was perhaps a dream for the audience, but I didn’t find it that exciting because we had lost the structure.
“In the first half we were actually in control of the game when we were behind and immediately came back after the score was 1-0. We have to go into the break with more than a draw. Nonetheless, we’re happy to take a point with Eintracht Frankfurt – one of the top teams in the Bundesliga.”
Augsburg 2-2 RB Leipzig
Jess Thorup: “We said before the game: If we want to get points, then we need a top performance – the team showed that today. In the first 30 minutes we pressed hard and took a 1-0 lead, then suddenly we were 1-2 behind after two great goals from our opponent. But my players always tried to come back with morale and character and were rewarded with the 2-2 draw. The last 15 minutes were hectic because my team wanted to get three points until the last minute.
“Overall it was a great game and at the end there was a point that we were a little disappointed about today, but will be very happy about tomorrow. It’s a great sign when the players are dissatisfied immediately after the game after a 2-2 draw against Leipzig. Because that shows that we always want to develop further.”
Marco Rose: “The statistics also prove that it was a fair draw. Overall, it was an intense, good-class Bundesliga game with a lot of class. We had the game well under control, came back quickly after the 0-1 lead and didn’t take an undeserved lead in the second half.
“We had the chance to make it 3-1, but then conceded the equaliser after a counterattack. If we score the penalty in the end and get three points, then I would consider it a good, mature performance against a strong opponent. So I have to declare a draw.”
Werder Bremen 1-2 Heidenheim
Ole Werner: “We put Heidenheim in too many situations in the first half that strengthened them. We allowed too many set pieces, found space up front, but didn’t have any clear chances to score. Things were better in the second half, but then the effectiveness, which has distinguished us in the last few weeks, was the difference. We had the opportunity to get at least one point, which we deserved.”
Frank Schmidt: “I told the team today that it’s not about being the party crasher, it’s about putting in a good performance. I want to see a team that shows that we can get something today. At the beginning we were good guests, invited the opponent, and had a huge chance in the 3rd minute. We were lucky that we didn’t end up 0-1. After that we worked our way in and had a strong 20 to 25 minutes in which we repeatedly moved dangerously forward and earned a lot of corners. Without exception, these were all extremely dangerous today, as is so often the case with Niklas Beste.
“We took the lead again through a corner. A sparkling clean counterattack that we played to make it 2-0. Of course it wasn’t planned that we would get 1:2 straight away because it can of course change a lot. I thought we were stable. We had a great chance to make it 1-3 after two corners in the 39th minute, or maybe we had to do it. It was already clear in the second half that with the changes I had to make with Tim, we had to change or adapt a lot of positions.
“The team was extremely capable of innovation and embraced it. We managed it with skill but also the necessary luck. We could have played one or two counterattacks better, but that’s how we earned this victory and, in my opinion, it wasn’t completely undeserved.”
Borussia Mönchengladbach 0-0 Darmstadt
Gerardo Seoane: “We’re disappointed with the result and that we didn’t make more of the chances we created. We were just too untidy in a lot of areas. Nevertheless, there were enough situations where we could have scored a goal. But in these situations, we were lacking calmness and composure. It’s a positive that we kept a clean sheet, because Darmstadt also had one or two dangerous moments. We’ll take the point and try to do better next time.
Torsten Lieberknecht: “It’s a good point for us after a good defensive performance. We filled the spaces well at the back, pressed well and were in the game. We also had two or three efforts on goal, but over the full 90, we failed to create more and better chances. Of course we had a bit of luck on our side in one or two situations, such as the chance for Jordan. The point feels okay and gives us optimism as we continue on our path.”
Union Berlin 1-0 VfL Wolfsburg
Nenad Bjelica: “I am very happy that we got the three points today. It was a hard-fought game in which Wolfsburg also had their chances. For us it was the third game in a week. Nevertheless, we gave everything, ran a lot and deserved this victory.”
Niko Kovac: “Passion, willingness to run, intensity – the way the boys played today was one of a kind. We were clearly the better team throughout the entire game today. This is not a given here at the Alte Försterei. We created a lot of chances, so we should never have lost this game.”
Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 Bayern Munich
Xabi Alonso: “The victory is deserved. You have to be strong defensively against Bayern. We did a great job, played disciplined and compact, we gave up almost no chance. The first goal was very important, the performance and effort overall were great.”
Thomas Tuchel: “We dominated the game early on without becoming dangerous. Due to our own mistakes, we let the momentum and energy tip. You can’t actually concede the 1-0 with a five-man chain. Then the momentum changes. It didn’t feel like a 3-0. The second goal also came too cheaply. We lacked the penetration at the front to win. We wanted to defend very offensively so as not to let Leverkusen’s flow of the game arise.
“We made very bad decisions, even after winning the ball. It happens too often to us that after winning the ball we immediately lose the ball again. We’ll do the devil’s best to throw in the towel. Leverkusen has created a gap. Our approach doesn’t change. We have to keep going and get better to live up to our standards.”
VfB Stuttgart 3-1 Mainz
Sebastian Hoeneβ: “We saw what was expected to be a difficult game. We had the first chance of the game through Deniz Undav. After that we were lucky that we didn’t fall behind. It was not clear who would score the first goal of the game. We had a huge chance that we didn’t take. It was all the more important that we took the lead shortly afterwards. There was a bit of luck in the ball sailing through the entire box. Maxi takes the ball well and scores the goal.
“Then we started our good phase and perhaps missed closing the game. After the break we wanted to get back out on a good note. Then we make it 3-0, which feels like a relief, but we get behind shortly afterwards. We had to suffer again because we also felt the game on Tuesday. It was another open game in which we had to overcome one or two situations. We played backwards too much in this phase.
“In the end we were happy that the game was over. Praise goes to the team for embracing the character of the game. We are happy about the win, knowing full well that it wasn’t our best home game.”
Jan Siewert: “Congratulations to Stuttgart on their win. We conceded two unnecessary goals shortly before half-time. We have to do a better job of defending against situations. We compensated for personnel losses quite well and actually have to be the team that takes the lead. After the 0:1 the game turns. Until then we were courageous and attacked the opponent high, which made it all the more bitter that we lost 2-0 before the break. Of course that makes it difficult here. We’re disappointed that we weren’t able to get anything worthwhile here.”
Hoffenheim 1-1 Köln
Pellegrino Matarazzo: “We saw a game with very few chances. Both teams placed great emphasis on disciplined defense. We definitely saw a step forward defensively. Almost out of nowhere we concede the 0:1. We had a few chances that could have taken the lead. At the end the team shows morale. But the fact is that we have the right to win against Cologne in the home game. It is also our aim to create more chances. We’re not burying our heads in the sand, we’ll continue next week against Union Berlin and we’ll work on getting three points.”
Timo Schultz: “We will take a point with us to Cologne. Even if it feels different because of the goal, we now have one more point in our account. The draw is fair because we didn’t manage to make better use of our opportunities. We would have liked to take the three points and we were close to it.”
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