Holstein Kiel’s coach Rapp on expiring contracts and transfers

Don’t keel on “Wünsch dir was”

During the winter break, Holstein Kiel’s head coach Marcel Rapp relies primarily on recovered top performers and less on newcomers, which in his opinion the second division team can hardly afford anyway – at least with the core competencies required for them. “Our hopes also rest on players like Alexander Mühling, Marco Komenda, Benedikt Pichler and Timo Becker, who have been out for a long time due to injury. With them, so much quality comes back that we could never commit to the transfer market now,” said the 43-year-old in a “kicker” interview.

“That will bring us a whole step forward in terms of performance and also heat up the competition,” said Rapp. After 15 match days in the second division, his team is in eighth place in the table. “We are better off than in the budget table. We’ve got everything we’ve got,” said the coach. In these statistics, the “Storks” should be in eleventh place. Rapp also urged caution. “We are not daydreamers. We must always be careful not to overestimate ourselves and then hit the bottom hard. Anything else would be presumptuous for a club like Holstein Kiel.”

15 expiring contracts at Holstein Kiel – Probably no winter transfers

What the North Germans will look like in terms of personnel for the 2023/24 season is still in the stars. Problematic: The contracts of 15 players will end next summer – including that of Fabian Reese (24), who should be the focus of 1. FC Köln and could only generate a fee in winter. “If we were at ‘Wünsch dir was’, then all decisions would have been made by the start of the second half of the season. But it won’t be like that,” Rapp clarified. “The important thing is transparency and how you deal with the situation. As of today, we will not sign any newcomers in winter. With a view to the size of the squad, a loan might make sense in one case or another. We speak openly about this with the relevant players.”

In terms of squad value, the Kielers are in eleventh place before the upcoming second division update with 17 million euros, framed by SC Paderborn and 1. FC Heidenheim. Currently the most valuable professionals are Reese, Mühling and Captain Hauke ​​Wahl. The club finished last year in ninth place, having previously been relegated to the Bundesliga under current Werder coach Ole Werner.

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