Out in the Champions League, poor results in the league – the word “crisis” slowly but surely came up at RB Leipzig. The victory in the DFB Cup quarter-finals against Borussia Dortmund is now creating a positive mood again. A long, intensive discussion between the team was decisive for the strong performance.
Thanks to a “non-debate” at a lunch together during the week, RB Leipzig got back on track. “As a coach, I wanted them to have a meal together and talk. It’s exaggerated that that counts as a discussion,” said head coach Marco Rose after the 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund and the DFB’s semi-finals -Cups.
It should be and there has been a lot of talk about football, Rose reported on the gathering that had been important to RB ahead of what could be a game-changer for the season. Goal scorer Timo Werner also found that his team had a good time together.
Rose with the confidence of the club management
At the Leipzig Cottaweg you can now blow deeply because of the victory. Another blow to the neck after the embarrassing end in the Champions League and the inconsistent performance in the league was prevented, there is still a chance of a title and a decent season.
“There are always phases in football where you lose games unluckily or, like we deservedly, lose and play really badly – then in a club with high ambitions, a lot of questions are asked quickly and the atmosphere isn’t that great anymore “Rose summed up the mood. He himself had previously received support from managing director Max Eberl, regardless of the outcome of the game Do you want to extend the contract?Eberl had announced.
Decision leaves Rose completely exhausted
Against BVB, however, his team seemed “zero insecure” and was “very, very greedy”, said Rose: “Today we were convinced of what we can do.” Especially in the first half, RBL played as if they had been changed compared to the previous appearances. Right from the start, RB had the sovereignty of interpretation on the field and hardly gave BVB any time to breathe. “They ate us up in the first half,” said Dortmund captain Marco Reus afterwards on ZDF. The game became more open in the second half, but both teams didn’t take advantage of their chances. The decision was only made with a counterattack in injury time.
Ultimately, this also brought coach Rose to complete exhaustion. His jubilant sprint to the team also showed how important it was for the 46-year-old to have won the game against his former club. “It was the decision in a decision-making game. There was a lot going on in a phase where we had one or the other issue,” said Rose. In the dressing room, he finally needed “15 to 20 minutes plus a change of T-shirt to catch his breath”.
Bayern-Aus an additional push for Werner
“If you win against Dortmund in the quarter-finals, you take a very big step towards the final and also the cup win. The fact that Bayern were kicked out gave us even more push,” explained Werner. In the concert of the last four, RB, as the defending champion, is suddenly the big number and goes into the semi-finals as a favorite. Rose also “would like to go to Berlin” and would like to see a home game in the semi-finals – it doesn’t matter who the opponent is.
Last year’s defeated finalist SC Freiburg, the reigning Europa League winner Eintracht Frankfurt and VfB Stuttgart would be possible. All “good teams” as Rose thinks. Freiburg, in particular, would like to put a spanner in the works for Marco Rose’s team on their way to their second DFB Cup win. After your coup against FC Bayern Munich and fourth place in the Bundesliga table, you are also a hot contender for the triumph. In addition, they still have an open account with RB after the unfortunate loss of the 2022 final.
More talks about football planned at RBL
Before it is clear how things will continue in the cup, the draw for the semi-finals is due on Sunday (7 p.m. live on the first). In the league, the away game at Hertha BSC awaits Rose and his team the day before. In order to get back on track in the league and to be able to continue pursuing the goal of direct Champions League qualification, there will probably be more “non-talks” at RB. “Now it’s time for us to meet again and talk a lot about football again,” said Rose.
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