Satisfied and relieved, Sebastian Hoeneß objectively classified the victory in his first Bundesliga game as coach of VfB Stuttgart.
“Those were big points and we’ll take them with us,” said the 40-year-old after his team’s thrilling 3-2 win at VfL Bochum. Understandably, Bruno Labbadia’s successor was far from euphoric. Although his team left the last place in the table, they are of course still in the middle of the tight race to stay up in the relegation ranks in 16th place. The game in the Ruhr Stadium offered an exciting relegation battle – with an ugly scene at the end.
confrontation
After things got heated on the pitch and he was insulted from the stands after the game, Bochum goalkeeper Manuel Riemann got into a fight with fans. VfL trainer Thomas Letsch had not seen the scene himself, but generally promoted peaceful behavior. “Violence has no place on the soccer field,” said Letsch. “We don’t need verbal violence either.” The 54-year-old football teacher also said: “I think anyway, when we think about society, that far too much is happening in that regard. That’s why we don’t need it in the stadium. That has no place here.”
setback
For VfL, the defeat after seven points from three games was a setback in the relegation battle. “We missed a great opportunity to keep a competitor at bay,” said Letsch. With a win, Bochum would have distanced VfB to nine points. Now the Ruhr area club is only three points ahead of the Swabians in 15th place in the table. But Letsch was combative. “We knew it was a fight to the end and we’re going to take it,” he said. “The relegation battle will go on for a while with the usual suspects.”
Attacking player Christopher Antwi-Adjei said: “I know the boys can do better. We will definitely hit back.” The 29-year-old added: “We’re still above the line.” He spoke of a decent starting position.
Double anticipation
While the Bochum team was annoyed, the Stuttgart team were already looking ahead to the tasks ahead. On Saturday, VfB welcomes the top team from Borussia Dortmund. “It’s a full house. It’s a game we can look forward to,” said Hoeneß. “It’s a chance to improve our situation and that’s how I want us to approach the game.” The coach added: “With the spirit of today, something is possible.”
When asked about the semi-final drawn in the DFB Cup against Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday, Hoeneß said: “It’s a highlight for our team and for the club. It’s great for the fans that we’re playing at home.”
