Coach Frank Schmidt makes no illusions in the relegation battle of his Heidenheim team. Refreshingly different from the usual trainer motivation gurus.
What kind of pep talks are we used to at this stage of the men’s Bundesliga? The coaches of relegation-threatened clubs appear as spiritual guides in obscure corners of the Internet. There is talk almost constantly of unbroken hope, of belief in a safe shore, even if its distance would be like crossing the Atlantic. And when nothing works anymore, people like to say: “We need a miracle.” The spiritual guide must not pretend to be tired, must not reveal resignation.
Refreshingly different in Heidenheim. There it doesn’t look good after the 24th matchday: Heidenheim are eight points behind the relegation place. With the point tally at this moment, no club had managed to survive since the three-point rule was introduced. Time for pep-talk formulas? No, coach Frank Schmidt accepts the hopelessness with open arms. “Our path – as of today – leads to the second division,” he noted after the 0-2 defeat to Werder Bremen.
Schmidt knows how to use the calculator: “We would have to close the gap in points on average more than we have on average after 24 matchdays. Therefore it would also not be right to say that faith is unbroken.” Faith, love, hope? Not in Heidenheim. “With hope you don’t get far in football anyway.” Indeed. And perhaps that shows that at least the love in Heidenheim is particularly strong. Schmidt, in office for eighteen years in biblical terms, does not need to impress fans and players with hokum. No miracles, no medicine-ball punishments, no daft motivational tricks. He enjoys the trust.
Because ultimately the guru-guff comes only from the inhumane pressure of expectations. Whoever as a coach throws in the towel even a second before the final whistle is deemed a weakling, perhaps losing the job immediately. In Heidenheim, the league shows a human face. At least until the end of the season. Because it probably won’t go on much longer. Even the gurus secretly know this.
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