FIRST TEAM
11/30/2011

Stani: “100% from every player”

December 2nd 2003 is an historic date for 1899 Hoffenheim. This coming Friday, it will have been eight years to the very day that the Sinsheim outfit were victors over Bayer Leverkusen for the first and only time since. On that day, TSG pulled off a giant-killing in the German Cup by beating the then Bundesliga side 3-2. Were another result to occur this Friday in the BayArena this Friday, it will be the first points Hoffenheim have taken at the home of the Werkself since gaining promotion to the Bundesliga in 2008. Kick-off is at 8.30 pm.

Stanislawski in charge

Manager Holger Stanislawski's pre-match plans have been thrown into a little doubt by the actions of Chinedu Obasi and Roberto Firmino. The two apparently arrived late for training a day after the 1-1 draw with SC Freiburg last weekend. Since it is not the first time these two players have been late to training, Holger Stanislawski took the decision to suspend them for the game against Leverkusen, and they will not travel with the team. “They have trained separately to the rest of the squad this week”, revealed Stani today. Despite their indiscretion, Stanislawski was quick to emphasise a line had been drawn under the two players' misconduct, and that Obasi and Firmino will be able to return to the first team soon. Tom Starke, also in the public eye this week after he apparently criticised striker Ryan Babel, has also been told to focus on his football and nothing else. “The only man permitted to publicly criticise the team is me. I have reiterated that to the squad and they know where they stand. Tom and Ryan have spoken with each other and as far as we're concerned the matter is over and done with”, said the manager.

The 42 year-old ex- St Pauli coach was keen to stress that that his squad is still in good shape and good spirits, and ready for the challenges ahead. “I won't let my squad be judged as a whole by these events. Every player at this club wants to develop himself and work hard to bring the fans some success.” In yesterday's press conference, the manager chose to focus on the upcoming game with Leverkusen.

Individuals vs. the collective

After a rough start to the current Bundesliga season, Leverkusen seem to have found some stability on recent weeks. After an impressive win against Chelsea FC in the Champions League, they are in 4th place in the league. “Bayer have definitely got stronger in the last few weeks. They changed managers at the beginning of the season and are now doing well in Europe and domestically. They also have quality in every position. We have to be at 100% for the entire 90 minutes if we want to take something from the game, and every player needs to play to his maximum. In recent games there have been phases when we've switched off for a period. That can't happen on Friday“, said Stanislawski.

Personnel changes in the offing

Aside from Obasi and Firmino not being available for selection, Stanislawski is expected to make other changes from his side. Captain Andreas Beck was suspended for the game against Freiburg but will likely return to his familiar position of right-back. Edson Braafheid (thigh) and Tobias Weis (calf) could also return, although their fitness will be evaluated in the remaining training sessions before Friday's game. Andreas Ibertsberger is on the comeback trail from a back injury, but may find that Friday comes too soon for him to be involved. Matthias Jaissle will also miss out due to his ongoing achilles problem.

Match facts and statistics »

Download Now!
Print Page to top