The legendary Hertha goalkeeper on Berlin’s chances in the relegation battle, memories of the new coach – and a worrying development.
Ten competitive games in a row without a win, five defeats in a row, no success in 2022. Hertha BSC is deep in the Bundesliga relegation battle. After the 2-0 defeat against Borussia Mönchengladbach on the last matchday, the once ambitious club in the capital slipped down to 17th place in the relegation zone.
The hapless coach Tayfun Korkut had to go, sports director Fredi Bobic entrusted the team to Bundesliga returnee Felix Magath – the 68-year-old should save what can still be saved.
Hertha fans fear for their club – including club legend Gábor Király. The goalkeeper stood between the posts in 252 competitive games from 1997 to 2004 and became a crowd favorite thanks to his legendary gray sweatpants. The Hungarian is still connected to the club. In an interview with t-online he talks about Hertha’s chances in the relegation battle, memories of Felix Magath – and reveals what he is missing in football today.
t-online: Gábor Király, the first word that comes to mind about the current situation at Hertha BSC?
Gabor Kiraly (45): At the moment things are not going as well as everyone at Hertha had imagined. I think a lot of people expected more at the beginning of the season. But of course we all hope that Hertha will stay in the Bundesliga…
That was more than a word now…
(laughs) That’s just my feeling at the moment, my way of describing it.
Is there anything that makes you optimistic?
I would put it this way: The big goal now is of course to stay in the league, to save Hertha BSC. Everyone has to do something for it, and the club management did something with the change of coach.
What do you think Felix Magath is capable of? His reputation has preceded him for years.
Not just for years, but for decades (laughs). Felix Magath has already proven at a number of clubs that his way of working works – in the old days. I hope that this also works in this day and age. I myself often played against teams that were coached by him…
Magath (centre) during his first Hertha training session: The Berliners are deep in the relegation battle. (Source: Matthias Koch/imago images)
Yes?
… they were always very combative and went to work with great intensity. And they were successful with that – but mainly because they could also play football. And all of that must now also work at Hertha. The players sometimes have to go beyond the pain threshold, and Felix Magath can be the right man for that.
You used to play with Sebastian Deisler or Marcelinho and were in the Champions League. Today the club is deep in the relegation battle. Is that still your Hertha?
It is now important to show character – as a team. What the players have shown so far is not enough, there must be more to come. In my time we had a lot of guys, a lot of characters on the team…
You, your compatriot Pal Dardai, Deisler, Michael Preetz, Arne Friedrich and more…
I am sure that this has often helped us.
What do you mean exactly?
This ability to pull yourself out of the swamp by your own hair when things don’t go well. When do today’s players want to show this trait if not now?
So actually a question of character.
I would like to name a few more names from back then: Zecke Neuendorf, Andy Thom, Michael Hartmann, Ante Covic – those were players who really identified with the club, and some are still active at the club today. We’ve all got through difficult times together, we’ve played together for years, and that creates a special bond.
Gábor Király: The Hungarian played for Hertha for seven years. Here he celebrates teammate Andreas Thom for his winning goal against Wolfsburg in January 1998. (Source: Camera 4 / imago images)
Are you missing that today?
Unfortunately, that’s different nowadays, often players – and their advisors – apparently don’t have the patience to follow a path for a long time. If things weren’t going well for us back then, we just kept going, worked harder – and at some point a sense of achievement came. But there has to be a willingness to do so.
Do you see this willingness in your former club? Is it possible to stay up in the league?
There are definitely enough games left to make it. Felix Magath will make a difference with his attitude. I’m still convinced that the team has to stay in the Bundesliga with the quality it has.