‚A maximally cool situation‘

We really struggled in Bielefeld. It was probably our worst game of the season. We couldn’t find any solutions, neither individually nor as a team. These things happen, but it stands out because it’s rarely been the case for us.

I have great confidence in the group and in our ability to deliver a different performance and find different solutions against Hannover. I don’t sense any loss of confidence, not even within the team. I’m looking forward to the home game on Saturday evening against a top opponent who’s currently one place below us in the standings. We’re excited for the match, want to approach it with confidence, and bring our strengths to the pitch.

We know about Hannover’s unique style of play. They play very aggressively off the ball and use a lot of man-to-man marking all over the pitch. They’re very patient in attack. Hannover has an incredible number of options in their squad. Especially in attack, they practically have two players for every position.

Perhaps that’s the difference compared to the Bielefeld game. Bielefeld surprised us a bit. Now we know what to expect. We’re excited and confident in ourselves. We’re still in an incredibly exciting situation right now, and we want to project that image.

In recent months, we haven’t been able to replicate our home form away from home. Now we have a home game. We know that, regardless of the opponent, we’ve consistently performed well and always earned at least a point, most recently playing a very good home game against Schalke. That gives us a good feeling, but of course, it’s no guarantee.

It’s pointless to look at the table; so much can still happen before the end of the season. We want to make sure we’re playing for something positive for as long as possible.

Let’s all look forward to a game like this. I can shout it to our office staff, the players, and the fans: We are Darmstadt 98, and we’re in an absolutely fantastic situation, and we should be excited about it and let that shine through. We’ll ignore the table; this game is going to be awesome.

We need to decide whether we want to field a very mobile attacking lineup or a single target man. Fynn and Bartosz are our target men. If we want to play more flexibly up front, we can move Fraser into that position.

Regarding the double pivot, we’ve always said that if Kai is unavailable, Mey is the player who, alongside Hiro, maintains the balance in our game with his physicality and tackling ability. Mey is certainly the favourite for that position in a double pivot.

That was probably one of the best second-division matches of the season. As my colleague from ARD said, „A game that should never end.“ It wasn’t a festival of errors; almost everything that happened was well-executed, and it was a pretty awesome game. It would be great if we could see another game like that, ideally with the same result.

You’re always nervous when you’re not directly involved. If I were a fan, I’d have a beer at 7pm and then head to the stadium relaxed. (laughs) It’s going to be a close game. Both teams are top teams in the league. Both teams are attack-minded. Hannover has a very clear possession-based style, and we’re probably a bit more versatile in all attacking aspects. There will be a lot of close, small moments that will decide the game.