1. FC Köln: Anger about game transfer – “Is everyone coming at some point?”

Derby at Bayer Leverkusen

Cologne’s sports director Christian Keller has vented his anger about the circumstances surrounding the relocation of the Bundesliga derby at Bayer Leverkusen in the coming week, criticizing the Rhenish rivals and the German Football League. “No one here wants to know what the processes are like, otherwise one or the other will lose faith in the integrity of the competition,” said Keller, himself a member of the DFL supervisory board, after the 0-1 draw against SC Freiburg on Saturday.

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The game in Leverkusen will take place next Friday, it was originally scheduled for Sunday. As a result, Leverkusen have two days more to prepare for the Europa League semi-final first leg at AS Roma. “I wonder why was nothing moved last year when Frankfurt played for the Europa League? Bayern Munich plays for an international title almost every year, and I’ve never seen a game be postponed,” said Keller. “Now everyone comes at some point and says: Come on, we have an important game, let’s move it for overriding reasons.”

The “overriding reasons” with which the transfer was explained are more about health for him. He reminded that Cologne had to play against Hoffenheim about 48 hours after the Conference League game in Slovacko last year and that striker Florian Dietz (24) tore his cruciate ligament in this game of all things. “I can’t explain that to anyone internally either,” said Keller. “And I don’t want that either.”

1. FC Köln annoyed by the circumstances when the game was relocated

But what annoys him the most are the circumstances. “We, as playing partners, were the very last to get involved when the number was more or less over,” said Keller in the direction of the DFL and probably Bayer in particular. “We got the last call. If you call us first, I might give different answers now. Normally we would have gone along with it without complaining too much. But because of the process and the way I don’t understand it and I don’t think it’s good either.”

Cologne coach Steffen Baumgart was also clearly annoyed, but he avoided the whole thing. At first he was silent for a long time when asked, then he said: “People who know me very well know what’s going on inside me. But I think even I sometimes have to learn not to comment on everything. And I won’t do that either.” But Baumgart didn’t want to resist a tip. When Freiburg coach Christian Streich spoke about the cup semi-final against Leipzig on Tuesday, he asked: “And you can do it in such a short preparation time? You can ask.”

But Keller made it clear that two things were unaffected by everything. “We’re keeping our fingers crossed for Leverkusen, honestly and sincerely, that they progress and at best win the Europa League, because that would be really important for German football,” said Keller. “And in terms of sport, it’s not necessarily a disadvantage for us. Of course, the training week changes a bit. But in the end that won’t be the decisive factor as to whether we’ll play the game successfully.”

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