Blessin: "We know we have something to make amends for against Augsburg"
Friday, 31. January 2025, 08:30 Uhr
After last week's home win over Union Berlin the Boys in Brown go again at the Millerntor against FC Augsburg this Saturday (15.30 CET). Head coach Alexander Blessin looked ahead to the game at the customary pre-match news conference on Thursday.
Alexander Blessin on…
...the injury situation: "We took James Sands out as a precaution because he's been playing after coming out of a long break and has covered a lot of kilometres, but I assume he'll be available again tomorrow and will train. The long-term casualties are still sidelined. Connor Metcalfe was involved in the first two parts of the session yesterday and today and got a round of applause from the team as well. It's great he's taken the next step. It's good to know he'll be back soon but I don't want to put him any pressure."
...new signing Siebe Van der Heyden: "I hold him in high regard. He had a very good season at Union Saint-Gilloise and then was sold but we had two weeks together and so I do know him well. I'm obviously really happy because he gives us something extra. He's very versatile and can play on the left flank, on the edge of a back three or as a second centre-half in a back four."
...the current state in the team: "Our aim last week was to win two games in a row for the first time. We did that and so we want to extend that run, of course. We know very well that we have something to make amends for against Augsburg because they knocked the stuffing out of us in the reverse fixture. We want to learn from that and take the impetus from the last two matches into the game with us."
...opponents Augsburg: "We didn't play well in the reverse fixture, that's for sure. Against a direct rival we'll see now whether we've taken a step forward. We have to go to the limit against teams like these who play with a lot of intensity and are strong in the tackle. Augsburg can play a bit as well, and it's this combination that makes them stand out at the moment. It won't be easy, but we have nothing to be afraid of. We go into the game with lots of confidence after the last two matches."
...the quality in the squad: "Every player knows he has to go flat out and that's exactly what we wanted. Our job now is to talk to the lads who aren’t playing so much. Someone it's only nuances that are missing. We have to give them the feeling they're an important part of the team. We're having lots of conversations and motivating the lads not to drop off in training, but they aren't doing that anyway, so there's not much to say."
Photo: Witters
