TSG Hoffenheim is under pressure before the Europa League game against Bucharest. Coach Christian Ilzer relies on “cheeky football” and courage on the offensive.
“The time is definitely ripe,” says Anton Stach. In the sixth attempt with new coach Christian Ilzer on the sidelines, TSG Hoffenheim finally doesn’t want to chase after a deficit. “I also know that we were often behind now. I think it’s something different when we’re in the lead,” said midfielder Anton Stach before the Kraichgauer’s Europa League game on Thursday (6:45 p.m. live in the audio stream) against the Romanian leaders FCSB Bucharest.
Even in Ilzer’s furious Bundesliga debut against RB Leipzig, his team was behind three times before making it 3-3 and 4-3 in the final phase. After that, they suffered three defeats in three competitions without scoring their own goal. The 47-year-old Austrian sees the 1-1 draw against SC Freiburg last Sunday – also after a 0-1 draw – as “absolutely the right step in the right direction” for 14th place in the table.
Hoffenheim only 25th in the table
On the sixth matchday of the international league phase, TSG is under a lot of pressure. Hoffenheim is 25th in the table. With only one win so far (2-0 against Dynamo Kiev), they are one place behind the ranks that entitle them to take part in the play-offs. Bucharest is tenth.
Audio tip
TSG Hoffenheim welcomes FCSB Bucharest in the Europa League. Heidenheim has to play away to Istanbul Basaksehir in the Conference League. The games on December 12, 2024, from 6:40 p.m in the SWR audio conference.
“There is a very, very long table that was initially very confusing for everyone,” said Ilzer. “For us, it’s definitely a game that we want to win. So that we can be back in the thick of things and not just there.”
Pressure and a robust opponent
He sees Bucharest as a “very robust team: it won’t be enough if we attack every ten minutes.” The 27-time national champion was the national champion European Cup winner in 1986 under the previous name Steaua Bucharest.
At least 24,000 fans are expecting the Hoffenheim team in Sinsheim. Ilzer and his team want to “show them a cheeky, courageous and lively football game”. For Stach, who has moved back from central defense to his preferred midfield position under Ilzer, “nothing has been won, nothing has been lost. With a win we can improve our starting position extremely.”
Broadcast on Thursday, December 12, 2024 at 6:00 a.m., SWR Aktuell in the morning, SWR Aktuell
