First week of the competitive season!
On 22nd June, Hertha began their preparations for the new season. Since then, the Blue-Whites have run their socks off on the training ground, spent lots of time in the gym and played eight friendlies. The end of the intense pre-season training is in sight and the first competitive match of the season is only a few days away. This Sunday, Hertha will face Eintracht Braunschweig in the first round of the DFB-Pokal (Sunday 31st July 2022, 18:00 CEST). The players took to the training ground on Tuesday morning, in the week the club celebrated its 130th birthday, to fine-tune their game ahead of Sunday’s cup tie against the team from Lower Saxony. “It was great to get back to the training ground in Berlin after returning from England. We are happy that the season is starting soon and we are really looking forward to the first game. We will use this week to prepare ourselves the best we can,” explained the new captain, Marvin Plattenhardt.
Without the head coach, but three players return
Sandro Schwarz wasn’t present at the training ground on Tuesday, as he is currently attending the International Coaches Congress in Dortmund. The session was instead led by the boss’ assistants. 27 players were present on Tuesday morning, along with four goalkeepers. Maximilian Mittelstädt, Filip Uremović and Márton Dárdai, all returned and fully took part in the session alongside their teammates, whereas Dongjun Lee, Omar Alderete, Kélian Nsona and Jessic Ngankam all trained individually.
After a warm-up, the players took part in exercises with the ball. First up was a passing drill, which focused on moving the ball efficiently and then the team focused on keeping possession in a game of Rondo. To finish, the players took part in various matches, including a nine vs. nine on a narrow field with large goals and then a four vs. four with small goals. In the 80 minute session, the players worked hard, battled intensely and scored some fine goals. In the coming days, the players will continue training behind closed doors in preparation for their cup tie.
And with that, the first week of the competitive season is underway! As well as Sunday’s clash with Braunschweig, the fans have the 130th birthday party to look forward to, which is set to take place on Saturday 30th July.