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Miron Muslic: I’m certain that we’ll bounce back!
The clash with local rivals VfL Bochum ended in a 2-0 defeat on Saturday (31/1). Afterwards, head coach Miron Muslic and VfL coach Uwe Rösler gave their thoughts on the game, while new signing Dejan Ljubičić and goalkeeper Loris Karius also had their say.
Miron Muslic:
Congratulations to VfL on the win. We knew they have real weapons out wide, with plenty of pace in behind. Our defensive solidity has been the foundation of our season so far, and that’s something we were missing today. Even so, we still had some good moments, like Kenan’s through ball to Mika in the first half. We then defended the second goal extremely poorly with our five defenders against just two Bochum players. Despite that, we still tried everything after the break because we know how quickly games like these can turn. Nikola’s disallowed goal would have been exactly that kind of moment. These situations are part of football and we’ll analyse them in detail. I’m absolutely convinced the lads will show a reaction. This phase is a challenge, but we’ve already overcome several challenges in recent months. I’m certain that we’ll bounce back!
Uwe Rösler:
Losing our playmaker Mats Pannewig at short notice was a blow, but the team dealt with it really well. Bringing in Gerrit Holtmann worked perfectly for us – he made some great passes for his teammates and played a big role in what was a sensational first half, the best since I’ve been here. After the break it was clear we couldn’t keep up that tempo all the way to the end, and we also had a bit of luck that the referee judged their goal as a foul. You can definitely debate that if you watch it back. Their second disallowed goal was a clear handball, and after that we defended very well. I’m extremely proud of the team. This win is very important for our future, for our morale and for our confidence.
Dejan Ljubičić:
Of course we imagined the game going very differently, especially after conceding so early. In the first half we never really found our way into the match and defended poorly. That’s actually what set this team apart last year. After the break we came out well and, with Edin on, we had more momentum going forward. Now we have to analyse this defeat properly and show a different side of ourselves next weekend against Dresden.
Loris Karius:
We were too open at the back today. It felt like six or seven shots, which is too many by our standards. We gifted the opposition both goals because we switched off in those moments. Aside from that, we created chances again, but we were too sloppy in key moments. For me, even after going 1-0 down it was still a 50:50 game – I don’t think Bochum were clearly on top. However, we should have defended better and been tighter at the back. We knew there would be phases where things don’t go our way, even if nobody wants to experience one like this. Still, I believe in the lads and I’m convinced that together we can push ourselves back to the limit again – and then we’ll win games, ideally starting next week against Dresden.
