After a season of misunderstandings under Adi Hütter, Borussia Mönchengladbach wants to attack again with a fresh coach. The 45-year-old Westphalian Daniel Farke stands for ball possession football and should awaken euphoria around the Borussia Park again.
“The trainer is good. I notice it in the training sessions, in the speeches, how he takes us along. What kind of football he wants to play,” is how Christoph Kramer expressed his first impressions of the foals’ new trainer, 45-year-old Daniel color, off. The return to possession football is good for the team. That is the unanimous opinion in Gladbach and at the same time a small dig at predecessor Adi Hütter and the decision to have the Austrian signed for the 2021/22 season.
But tenth place and the weakest season in eleven years are in the past. With Farke and sports director Roland Virkus, who took office in mid-February as successor to Max Eberl, new energy should be released. “It was important to press the reset button,” summed up the leading player Kramer after only a few days in the training camp.
Norwich fans set a monument to Farke
Farke, who was once responsible for BVB’s youngsters, last worked for only two months at the Russian first division club FK Krasnodar, but canceled his contract after Russia’s attack on Ukraine – without a single competitive game as a coach.
Farke will not only be remembered forever for his more than four-year tenure at Norwich City (2017-2021). The fans commemorated him with a mural showing his likeness on a house in Norwich.
His high-press, high-possession style of play has been dubbed “Farkeball” by Canaries fans. He doesn’t want to move away from this style in Gladbach either: “Borussia Mönchengladbach has always stood for playing with possession. Creative, with combination football. I find myself there very much. I have a very good feeling that it fits,” said Farke at his first press conference in Borussia Park.
“Farkeball”: Intensive pressing and high ball possession
But what were the key elements in Farke’s era at Norwich? He gave the team a new identity and consistently implemented his idea of a 4-2-3-1 system with intensive, high pressing – even though his debut season ended in 14th place in the second English division. Farke’s style was heavily influenced by two attacking full-backs who provided the necessary width for the three attacking midfielders to push inwards.
In 2018/19, Norwich were one of the teams with the most possession and were promoted to the Premier League. Despite the immediate relegation, even Pep Guardiola raved about the Canaries’ possession football.
The German coach managed to regain promotion to England’s top flight again in 2021, but his tenure ended in early November after more than 200 competitive games on the Norwich City touchline. The club’s transfer policy – key players of the “Farkeball system” were handed over – no longer suited the football that Farke had established over the years.
“We need a good transfer summer”
The cooperation between Gladbach and Adi Hütter was also not suitable. Already under the Austrian, Borussia should return to possession-oriented play, but this was probably a fallacy. “Then you also have to get a ball possession coach,” said Hütter recently on “Servus TV” about the different ideas. “But I’m not alone,” Hütter referred to promised transfers that had not materialized.
Daniel Farke could now face the same dilemma. “We need a good summer of transfers. No question,” he said in his inaugural speech. The summer in question is still long, but so far not much has happened in terms of personal details: apart from Matthias Ginter, Gladbach has hardly given up a player, but there are only two names on the shopping list: defensive midfielder Ko Itakura, who was on loan from Manchester In the previous season at Schalke 04, City mostly knew how to convince in central defence. And the 18-year-old central midfielder Oscar Fraulo from FC Midtjylland, who is more likely to be considered a prospect.
Foal with the weakest defense in eleven years
You have to be “brutally honest,” said Farke about the goals with Borussia. It would be wrong to state goals that are too euphoric. The first step for the 45-year-old should be for everyone in Gladbach to pull together again. Courage, empathy and loyalty are important attributes for the coach. If then one or the other newcomer for Farke’s game idea is presented, a new basis should be laid at Borussia Park.
One of the most important tasks: The native of Westphalia has to restore a healthy balance between offense and defense: 61 goals conceded in the previous season were the third-highest value in the league and for the foals a flood of goals conceded since the 2010/11 season.
Whether with ball possession football or not – the foals want to play attractive and successful football again. Farke has already achieved a first change of mood.
Lars Wiedemann