“Be prepared to work hard”
When Sandro Schwarz looked around our training ground on Sunday, he came across the press conference room for the first time too. It was completely empty then, but that wasn’t the case on Monday, with a number of journalists present for his first press conference alongside Fredi Bobic. They spoke about pre-season, the work coming up over the new few weeks, the squad and expectations. “It would be great if our fans were able to really identify with our players, but that’s a process. First of all, we have to be prepared to work hard,” stated our new head coach. Fredi Bobic, board member for sport and communication, explained why he chose to hire Schwarz: “We got to know each other during the pandemic and realised that our sporting ideas matched, plus we got on. We spoke about a number of things and realised we are similar in several regards. I followed Sandro’s progress in Moscow, where he did excellently. These things convinced me that he is the right man for Hertha BSC.” herthabsc.com has summarised the quotes from the pair. They spoke about...
…the past few days:
Sandro Schwarz: I’ve received a warm welcome and I’ve already got to personally know the staff – we spoke about the next few days over dinner. As well as that, I checked out the training ground and the general infrastructure. I also had a number of chats on Zoom beforehand, which was important to make some first impressions and to talk about upcoming plans. Fredi and Dirk Dufner also got me involved in the squad planning and I’m obviously more of a part of it now.
…conversations before arriving:
Sandro Schwarz: Fredi and I exchanged our ideas of how we want to play football. I quickly got the feeling that they were similar. This may be a really tough challenge, but it’s one that I’m really, really excited about. I would have taken on this challenge even in the second division.
Fredi Bobic: We knew a long time ago that we would be looking for a new coach. I therefore had to get to work, even though we didn’t know which league we would be in. I spoke to several different candidates and Sandro became the favourite quite early on. We got to know each other during the pandemic and realised that our sporting ideas matched, plus we got on. We spoke about a number of things and realised we are similar in several regards. I followed Sandro’s progress in Moscow, where he did excellently. These things convinced me that he is the right man for Hertha BSC. He’s got a tough job ahead of him, however he’s got the required confidence and that was important for me.
…joint goals with the team:
Sandro Schwarz: I like order. That’s why I’ve always placed importance on my teams being structured and courageous. That means working hard without the ball and looking to be purposeful with it when attacking. It would be great if our fans were able to really identify with our players, but that’s a process. First of all, we have to be prepared to work hard.
Fredi Bobic: We will need time to reach where we want to be. You can’t achieve that in four or five weeks, we’re going to face some difficult times. Everyone needs to be aware of that.
…the squad:
Fredi Bobic: Our squad is not yet complete, we will need time once again for this. The transfer market is very slow right now, but we know that things will still happen. We firstly need to get some money in. A few players have returned from loans and will get another chance, whereas others want a change. We hope that we can sort some deals out in July. It’s not an easy situation for the coach, but we can’t do anything about it. Things are heading in the right direction with Prince Boateng – we could have a deal done soon.
Sandro Schwarz: My wishes aren’t important, what’s realistic is. First of all, everyone here will get a chance. The development of the squad will be a dynamic process that will go beyond pre-season. I had a good chat with Prince a few days ago. We spoke about last season, but also his potential role in this one. It was an honest conversation and a good basis for working together in the future.
...the goalkeepers:
Fredi Bobic: Oliver Christensen is in pole position to be our number 1 and we’ve all got a good feeling about that. He got his chance to impress during the play-off games against Hamburg. He will still obviously have to earn his place in the team in training. We’ve then got two young goalkeepers in Tjark Ernst and Robert Kwasigroch. They both have lots of potential still. The key thing for Rune Jarstein will be staying fit, if so, he can help support the others. If we get the feeling that we’re a bit light in the position, we’ll have to act on it.