After 12 years at Werder, 57 games in the third division and 18 at various youth levels for the German national team, the time was right for Käuper to make his Bundesliga debut. “It was a pretty cool moment. The atmosphere of a Bundesliga match, so many fans in the stadium – what a feeling.” Käuper played 74 minutes on his debut, showing real energy in his performance, but he also recognised the step up from the third to the top division. “You need to be so much quicker, you have far less time to think before passing on the ball. It’s a big change.” The midfielder looks back at a positive first appearance. “I can’t be completely satisfied because of the result, but it was a solid debut on a personal level. There were a few moments where I could have done things better, but I will work on it.”
His teammates also had good things to say about the youngster’s performance. “I think he did well today. He was calm on the ball and got out of tricky situations on the field. He’s lacking in experience, but that’s completely normal,” said Max Kruse. Thomas Delaney was positive about what his teammate had to offer. “There are definitely easier games to make your debut in. We more experienced players didn’t put in our greatest performance today and that made things harder for Ole.” Max Eggestein, who played with Käuper with the U23s, would like to see Ole back on the pitch: “He was calm on the ball and got his head up well.” Head coach Florian Kohfeldt echoed his players. “Ole was solid today. He can build on this.”
It remains unclear when Käuper will have a role this weekend. “Of course, I hope to be in the team to play Mainz, but we also have a huge game against Unterharchingen with the U23s on the weekend and I will give everything in that match if I’m not in the squad to play Mainz.” Käuper’s first Bundesliga match may very well change hands, too. “It would be a nice present for my younger brother,” he said. Not just Käuper’s younger brother, but also the rest of his family, were really proud with the young man’s debut. Hopefully, there’ll be a lot more to come.
