“Our mentality can be a very great strength.”

I see our strengths clearly in the fact that we’re in really, really good physical condition. This comes after a preseason that was significantly tougher and more intense than the last few. We were able to handle much higher intensity and volume, which the players tolerated well. That’s extremely positive. And we’re coming out of preseason healthy. That has to be emphasised. Even looking at the lineup for Saturday, very little has actually happened – thankfully.

I believe that the mentality I’m seeing can be a great strength. This week I showed the team some clips from the friendlies, which weren’t all perfect, where you’d say, ‚Wow, what did we put on the pitch?‘ But situations like when we block a ball after a set piece, the way they celebrate, the mentality they have among themselves: ‚Okay, we’ll defend this until the end.‘ That can definitely be a big strength of ours.

Fundamentally, I believe that as the season progresses, our style of play can once again become a major strength. I think that in some areas we already stand out from many others in the league.

But of course, there’s still room for improvement when it comes to our combination play. Being perfectly coordinated. Knowing, in stressful situations, when each player will do what. I’ve mentioned that a few times already. But I think that’s perfectly normal.

Our goal is definitely to bring this aspect back into sharper focus and develop it further, focusing on points and consistency. We’ve had friendlies and test matches where we’ve already achieved that. But it’s still inconsistent, that much is clear.

It’s obviously a style of football that operates on a very clear structure. That, I think, is the biggest misconception when you consider how much give-and-go play there is, how many one-twos are played, and how spaces are attacked. You could be tempted to think it’s a kind of chaos. But it’s far, far from that.

It’s incredibly structured. There’s a very clear spatial organisation. They know exactly who has which task at any given moment in the game. They occupy spaces very dynamically: centre-backs pushing forward into the holding midfield position; full-backs coming from the wings into the holding midfield positions; wingers drifting out of the centre. Meanwhile, wingers threaten the space behind the defence and occupy the central midfield positions.

The only real anchors, or rather the only two real anchors, who don’t change their positions are the central striker and the goalkeeper. Everyone else dynamically occupies spaces when they have the ball. That’s what makes it so incredibly attractive to watch. And it also makes it incredibly difficult to win the ball back using conventional pressing patterns.

I think it’s great. My only concern is that the referees no longer get a break. I believe Deniz Aytekin said something similar in an interview: „With the new rules, there’s no more downtime for the referees.“ They have to be constantly present, even when the ball is out of bounds. That’s the only thing where I think, „I hope this doesn’t negatively affect their decision-making in other situations.“

Otherwise, I find all these rules, which aim to increase net playing time and eliminate playacting and effective game management, very positive. So far, I’m a big fan of the rules that have been made because, in my view, they are completely in the best interest of football.

This summer was a bit hotter than last summer, not just in terms of temperature, but also for us. That much is clear. We wanted a change in the team, and we got it. And we’re very confident in what we’ve done. But it’s also clear that last year, the structures, the core of the team, and the automatic movements were much clearer from day one. And that’s a completely different kind of work you have with a team. If the question now is: Are we better now than we were at this point last summer? Then I can’t honestly answer ‚yes‘ to that question.

I can say that we have potential that makes me extremely confident that we’re on the path to development that might even go a step further than what we experienced with the team last year. Because despite all the incredibly positive aspects we had last year, there were, of course, limitations to what we did. And we’ve tried to find some answers to those limitations, including with the players we’ve signed.

If the question now is: Are we better than we were at this point last summer? And that’s why it’s a completely different summer. That’s also why I’m incredibly excited about what happens on Saturday, I have to say.