In eleven days, SV Werder return to Bundesliga action. The goal: survival. But how will things proceed until that clash with Bayer 04 Leverkusen? Will Werder travel to a training camp? What will team training look like? And how will players and coaches motivate themselves after a long break? Werder sporting director Frank Baumann took to the mixed zone to answer some of the most important questions on Thursday afternoon, and gave an insight into the time left until the Bundesliga restart.
… Why he campaigned for a later start for Werder: “From a sports science point of view, returning to competitive games after just eight days of team training carries a lot of risks, especially after such a long break. It wasn’t about the three or four days for us, but about a competitive disadvantage in recent weeks. It differed depending on the Bundesland whether you could train in groups of four, or with ten or eleven people, maybe allowed to tackle. Until recently, by the way, two to three weeks of team training was also the DFL’s wish, which had been suggested by the politicians. It was about the integrity of the competition and everyone having the same starting conditions. Until today, not every club had been allowed to start team training. But the DFL Executive Committee has now taken a different road, after weighing up all of their options, and of course we fully support this.
… A Monday night game as a compromise: “It’s basically a replication of the schedule for the matchday from March. Two games were moved for security reasons. That had nothing to do with our wishes.”
… A potential competitive disadvantage for some clubs: “It’s generally impossible to determine how big this is, because all clubs have trained differently. The differences resulted from a federal system of government, different regions and communes passed different regulations. You have to deal with that. There has been a lot of rumour about what other clubs have done, but we won’t dwell on that. We’re trying to get the best out of the situation.”
… Relations with the Bremen government: “In recent weeks, we’ve had great discourse with not only Mr Mäurer, but with Mr Bovenschulte and Mrs Stahmann as well. Bremen’s politicians have fought their scepticism and for their own conviction. So they deserve respect. As the smallest Bundesland, it’s not easy to go against the others. That’s an attitude we need as a club, to stand together and fight. We need this passion, as well as team spirit and togetherness, so that we can do this with all of our might. I’m not annoyed with the politicians, who decided in the best knowledge and conscience. It was always clear to us that we had to obey the rules, and we did that from the first to the last day.”
… Potential gatherings of fans: “In recent weeks, there’s been widespread acknowledgement that that we have to avoid mass gatherings. That remains the case. I’m convinced that everyone will agree. In addition to the great healthcare system and the good decisions made by the politicians, Germany has distinguished itself by the fact that the population has adhered to the regulations.”
… The quarantine training camp: “We’ll go to a seven-day training camp. We’ll do a lot of intense preparations there. We’ll discuss the details over the weekend and that make them known. The guidelines for it have been defined in detail in the hygiene proposal. It will certainly result in the hotel having exclusive floors, entrances and meeting rooms, so that we can maintain the necessary distance from other guests and hotel staff.”
… Injuries: “As we’ve said several times in recent weeks, we don’t think we’ll see Kevin Möhwald and Niclas Füllkrug, not even until the end of the season. Ömer Toprak won’t be out for that long. I’m not convinced that he’ll be ready for Leverkusen though.”
… Keeping to hygiene regulations: “We’re not just a football team, but a business as well. It was one of the tasks of the management, together with directors and employees, to implement measures for the safety of personnel. That worked well. Dr Daniel Hellermann is responsible to the team as hygiene officer. He’s coordination all measures. He’ll make sure that players, coaches and staff follow the guidelines.”
… Training: “One stipulation of the medical concept is that sessions are not open to the public. We’ll take that into account and train in the stadium or “pitch 11”. Basically weeks will be different, we’ll prepare and warm down differently, and stay in a different hotel. We’ll do everything we can to ensure that we can stay in the Bundesliga.”
… Getting motivated after a long break: “Long weeks at home with individual training and training in small groups didn’t have much to do with football and the excitement of the competition. It’ll be important to motivate ourselves now, without overdoing in. Of course it also isn’t helpful that spectators won’t be attending matches. There’s a lack of excitement when you lack that support in the stadium. That’s why we have to self-motivate even more. We all know how precarious our league position is. That’s motivation enough.”
… The public debate in professional football: “Football is our job. Are players are professionals, who need to and can block that out. Love for the game unites us all. Being able to go and play football again now can help to put private worries aside. We expect that from our players. We’re well aware of our duty of care towards them, and also the our role as role models. We want to fulfil both. We need to manage this balancing act, and I think we’ve succeeded in doing so over the last few weeks.”
… The financial significance of the league’s continuation: “We need to complete the season in order to bring in all of the TV revenue. It’s currently paid out per matchday. So it’s important for clubs to be disciplined. As yet, Werder aren’t in debt, and therefore haven’t had to shelve anything, but liquidity management plays an important role. Obviously it would be helpful if we could play the season to the end. But it’s not the only reason why we’re excited about the restart. As sportsmen, it’s important that the season is decided at the end. That’s why we’re playing.”
