Our goal is to go through

Hertha BSC started the season with a win against VfB Stuttgart. The match winner was Mathew Leckie, who hasn’t always had things go his way of late.

Berlin – In past few months, Mathew Leckie hasn’t had everything go his way. Despite his lack of goals last season at FC Ingolstadt, the attacker remained positive and his 2700 minutes without a Bundesliga goal is now firmly in the past. Leckie scored twice in a 2-0 win against VfB Stuttgart. “The criticism that was aimed towards me was understandable. Last season, it just wouldn’t fall for me in front of goal but I didn’t let it get to me and carried on believing in myself. Now, I’m much happier and yesterday was special for me”, said the Australian after Saturday’s win.

A successful season opener

It was special for Leckie as he ended his goal drought by scoring his first ever Bundesliga brace, but the game was also of particular importance to Leckie as it was his debut. “It was great to play in front of our fans. I enjoyed it a lot especially as we got 3 points to start our season perfectly”, said the 26-year-old who gave the crowd something to celebrate after the half-time break. After a nice dummy, Leckie shot into the far corner to make it 1-0 in the 46th minute. “I created the room for myself and finished it well”, said the new Hertha signing with a cheeky grin.

With his second goal, the speedy player showed off another of his attributes; one that only good forwards possess. Perhaps he had a bit of luck on his side, something that he hasn’t had for a long time.  Be that as it may: After just over an hour, Leckie was in the right place at the right time and was able to finish from close range, following a deflection, to make it 2-0. “I am very pleased for Lecks. He has been training really well and we are very glad to have him,” said coach Pál Dárdai, whose analysis of the game made it clear that he will be expecting more from his team in future. He complained that, “Our 1-0 lead looked insecure, and at 2-0 we looked even more insecure. In these periods of games, we can’t afford to be so jittery, but must instead go looking for a third goal”.   

Two wins out of two

Dárdai wasn’t completely satisfied with the team’s first half performance, even though his players controlled the game, had more of the ball and won more duels than their Swabian opponents. “We weren’t giving Stuttgart any chances, but in attack we were just over-complicating things” explained Ungar.  This type of play on show is not uncommon for first games of the season. “We were somewhat sluggish in possession and we didn’t play at a high enough tempo. Therefore it was a tough first half” said Sebastian Langkamp. In the end the centre-back, just like his coach, wanted to be a bit overly critical. Ultimately they have played two games, and have won twice - without conceding a goal. “Everyone knows how difficult the first game is. We have come away with three points, so we are satisfied with that,” said Dárdai. In fact, it was the club’s 300th Bundesliga home win.

Meanwhile, Mathew Leckie was more than satisfied as he left the ground. Hertha’s number 11 had a successful Saturday, which marked the end of quite a significant week for him. On Friday the week before, his wife Laura brought their first daughter into the world. “My first child, and then my first goals for Hertha. I’d say this has probably been the best week of my life,” said the Hertha man, whilst he probably just wanted to leave and hurry back to his young family. Now the Australian and Dárdai’s men need to recover before the away game in Dortmund on Saturday. After a Monday off, the Berliners then begin their preparations on Tuesday for their first away game of the 2017/18 season. Mathew Leckie will certainly be hoping to keep his perfect week going for a little longer.