Danny Latza: We played with a lot of passion and composure

33-year-old Danny Latza returned to the team alongside 31-year-old Marcin Kaminski, 32-year-old Dominick Drexler and 35-year-old Simon Terodde; four players who been in the professional game for over a decade.

Early two-goal lead was a confidence booster

The plan paid off on Friday night, the Royal Blues able to overcome the pressure and pick up a deserved three points at home against relegation rivals Hertha BSC. An important first step on the road to victory was Tim Skarke’s early opener, who found the back of the net a little less than three minutes into the game. Ten minutes later, Marius Bülter doubled the lead with a header. “It gave us confidence to go 2-0 ahead,” acknowledged Latza after full time.

Latza said that the team carried out the match plan well in the first 30 minutes. “We carried out everything that we wanted to. We played with a lot of passion. We had fighting spirit and we left our hearts out on the pitch,” said Latza, who said that the team also played with a cool head. “We played well and were the deserved winners.”

Good reaction to conceding

Ralf Fährmann’s injury – the goalkeeper was taken off in the 36th minute with an adductor problem – was a small blow to the team, said Latza, and the visitors got a goal back shortly after. The team found the right response after the break when Simon Terodde restored the two-goal lead after some good work from Kenan Karaman. “We brushed off their goal well and scored our third goal very early on in the second half,” said Latza, who said that the good mood in the stands and on the pitch after the goal made everything a lot easier.

Schalke’s number eight is also aware that the team need more successes in order to achieve safety in the league. “That was a first step. We have a lot of time ahead of us where we need to bring the same level of passion onto the pitch,” said the captain. “And then hopefully we can pick up some more positive results in our upcoming games.”