After a depressing week with two hefty defeats, it is high time for a turnaround from Gladbach’s point of view. Sporting director Max Eberl registers the questions of the sporting crisis – and takes a full stand against it.
The experienced Borussia boss had already answered the most important question immediately after all systems failed against Freiburg. Even after the 1:4 in the derby in Cologne and the historic 0:6 against Freiburg, he believes Adi Hütter is the right coach to lead Borussia out of the sporting crisis.
He calls the discussion about possibly not wanting to continue the joint path that only began in the summer “absurd”. And of course, the experienced Eberl also knows exactly the buzzwords that those in charge like to throw around when they get the right results: “Mentality, feel-good oasis, leading players – these are the usual topics that come up,” Eberl said on Thursday.
Internally it has to bang.
He doesn’t think much of “acting populist and delivering headlines”, according to Borussia’s sports director. At the same time, of course, he does not hide the fact that there has to be a concrete reappraisal of the sporting crisis, “internally,” says Eberl, “it has to bang.”
But: “Oasis of well-being? I can’t do anything with that,” says Eberl quite clearly. There are only a few leading players anyway, and basically the question is also allowed who is a leading player at all – so much for the topics of the external critics.
Celebrate together, suffer together
Generally, Eberl urges unity and advises a factual and professional approach to the recent belly landings. Of course there is resentment among the fans, but he is “not afraid that the fans will run away from us. We celebrate together when we beat Bayern 5:0, we suffer when we lose 0:6 against Freiburg.” Anyone who can’t live like that, “those people,” says Eberl, “I don’t want.”
The sporting director radiates composure, knowing that in Hütter he has a very experienced coach who can stand firm even in the face of headwinds. Hütter has already proven his ability to cope with crises on several occasions in the past.
Memories of Frankfurt’s false start
For example, his start at Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer of 2018 also went wrong: After the 0:5 in the Supercup against FC Bayern and the cup exit in the first round at regional league side Ulm, Hütter was already considered a candidate for dismissal. But he got Eintracht on track, stormed into the semi-finals of the Europa League with the Hessians, and in the end took his team into the European Cup in seventh place.
So will the game in Leipzig on Saturday bring the turnaround? “RB is very difficult to assess, especially with the new coach “, Hütter thinks, “of course they have a lot of very good individual players, but they are still in the process of finding their way. “
Personnel changes at Borussia are possible and likely. According to Hütter, 23 players were on the pitch on Thursday, including the recently injured Stefan Lainer and Manu Koné. The midfielder, who has seemed a bit overplayed lately, would be a candidate for a break, though. It is quite conceivable, for example, that the veterans Lars Stindl and Christoph Kramer will be back in the starting eleven.
