Schreuder: "I'm really happy"

Alfred Schreuder on…

…the tasks ahead: ''I'm really happy to be here and I'm proud to be able to say that I'm the head coach of TSG Hoffenheim. I very much want to write a new chapter in the history of the club. We have a strong squad and I'm one hundred percent certain that we're going to achieve the goals we've set for ourselves.''

…the first training session: ''It was just a short session. Tomorrow we have the lactate test. The entire day was good, I enjoyed getting to know the players a bit. The boys are focused and were all really happy to see one another again after the break. I picked up a real sense of enjoyment, and that's important.''

…his new role at TSG: ''The most important thing is always the person behind the coach, as well as the person behind the player. I've told the players that, in the role of head coach, I'll have to make different decisions to the ones I made back when I was an assistant coach. They'll come to understand that.''

…the expectations: ''Julian Nagelsmann's time at the club was very successful and of course that means that the sense of expectation has increased. I'm well aware of that. But the pressure was really high at Ajax too, a lot was expected of me as a Feyenoord player: I know my way round this kind of situation.''

…the large number of fans present at the training session: ''I was really happy to see so many fans turn out today. It's always nice to get such a good reception. We hope that the fans continue to turn out in such large numbers.''

Alexander Rosen on…

…Alfred Schreuder: ''I'm happy to have Alfred sitting beside me here today. I remember well when I first came across Alfred Schreuder. We immediately got on very well and I soon realised that he was far from your typical assistant coach. It was a special challenge for him working with an experienced head coach like Huub Stevens. Back then, Alfred was the one who led the sessions out on the training ground, despite the fact Huub was the one making the final decisions. We only planned for him to stay at the club on an interim basis, but it ended up turning into a long-term relationship. We always kept in touch with him after his move to Ajax. When we reached the point of having to select a new head coach, Alfred was immediately up there on the list of candidates.''

…possible changes to the squad: ''In our eyes, the ideal squad size is around 24 players. Today we had 22. We still have a few players out on international duty and one injured player in Ishak Belfodil. We're in a good position just now and I can assure you that there's more to come from us in the transfer market.''