Union got off to a catastrophic start against Bochum and therefore came away empty-handed in the very important game. Then there were attempts at explanation.
Defeat against Bochum: Rani Khedira and Nenad Bjelica (right). IMAGO/Nordphoto
“We were incredibly motivated,” said Khedira on DAZN-Micro after the 3:4 thriller against Bochum, also referred to the incredible atmosphere in the stadium at the Alte Försterei and said: “That should actually inspire us.” However, the opposite was the case. “Maybe it pulled the plug on us to a certain extent, maybe we overreacted and that inhibited us,” the midfielder puzzled and admitted: “I don’t have a real explanation.”
The Iron team’s performance in the first half was “definitely a straight 6,” noted Khedira. “We played far too wildly, lost far too many balls and were far too hectic,” summarized Benedict Hollerbach and also speculated that they might have been over-motivated. “Everyone wanted to pull it off today,” said the 22-year-old and was annoyed about the missed opportunity because after the restart they showed how they should play against VfL.
“Football is not rugby. You have to do something with the ball, you have to be technically good. In a game like this you have to calm the ball down, let Bochum run and not let them get into their game. Then we wouldn’t have had a problem.” said Hollerbach and pointed out that the Berliners had achieved that in the second half.
But not in the first round. This made it easy for VfL and allowed the Bochum team to play their typical game with “second balls, throw-ins, headers and one-touch extensions”. “The way we did it in the first half was simply stupid,” emphasized Hollerbach: “They tore us apart.”
Bjelica emphasizes particular weakness
Tearing your hair out: Robin Gosens and Benedict Hollerbach (right) came away empty-handed against Bochum. IMAGO/Beautiful Sports
Coach Nenad Bjelica’s verdict was similar. The Croatian particularly pointed out the fact that Union had only won 26 percent of all aerial duels in the first 45 minutes. “You can’t win a game like that against Bochum,” says Bjelica, who also noticed that his players were “very nervous” going into the game. “We didn’t do anything with the ball.” Bjelica also emphasized the great efficiency of the Bochum team. VfL scored “three goals from three shots”. “If we had this effectiveness, we would have ten points more.”
Khedira apologizes
Khedira, in turn, apologized to everyone who is keeping their fingers crossed for Union Berlin. “I’m incredibly sorry,” said the 30-year-old and promised, “that we will perform completely differently next Saturday. We will give it our all and try everything possible to stay in the league.”
Hollerbach was also optimistic about this, admitting that they had “absolutely failed as a team in the first half”, “but the second half is encouraging – and we still have two games.” And Bjelica? He is “convinced that we will manage to stay in the league.” The Croatian didn’t say anything about whether it was direct or via relegation. But that’s what Khedira did, who demanded: “We have to deal with all scenarios – including relegation.”
Union has to play in Cologne next weekend and has a home game against SC Freiburg in the season finale.
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2024-05-05 17:32:22
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