"We have to be honest with each other" | OneFootball

Ole Werner was unsatisfied with his side's display against Freiburg (Photo: WERDER.DE).

Reaction to the defeat against SC Freiburg

Unsurprisingly, Ole Werner and the Green-Whites struggled to hide their disappointment following the heavy 5-0 defeat on matchday 23 to SC Freiburg. WERDER.DE were in the mixed zone after the game to gather the reactions to the result.

Head coach Ole Werner: “I’m really disappointed, but we have to accept that we thoroughly deserved to lose today. We matched them in the first half, but they were clinical in the penalty area, which is what made the difference. The game was decided after their third goal, which followed a similar narrative to that of our performances in other games this year. If we’re careless and fail to track back all the way up the field, it ends in defeat like today. We have to be honest with each other and admit that we aren’t playing well enough to pick up points at the moment.”

Niklas Stark: “We weren’t good enough today. That was not the sort of performance that we need to be delivering against Freiburg if we want to come away with three points. We deserved to lose for that reason. When a side creates a chance against us, it ends in a goal more often than not – that’s just the way it goes in football and the Bundesliga. If you track back even a second too late, the ball will be in the back of the net. We have to drill that back into us and make sure we stop leaving any spaces uncovered."

Amos Pieper: “We fell short in every regard today. We didn’t give it enough. It’s totally unacceptable and can’t happen again, especially after the Hoffenheim game when we needed to show a good reaction. We have to apologise to the fans who were disappointed once again today. As horrible as it feels at the moment for us, we have to push forward nonetheless, as we still have something left fighting for.”

Romano Schmid: “I feel ashamed after the performance today, particularly as the fans remained so supportive after the game – I had goosebumps. The first half was okay, but we didn’t step up to the plate. We aren’t showing enough desire or going the extra mile at the moment. We fell apart after their third goal, lost the ball easily and weren’t supporting each other. We have to pull ourselves together now and prove how well we’re capable of performing.”

Managing director for sport Clemens Fritz: “That was desolate. Our style of play was okay in the first half, but luck wasn’t on our side and we needed to work for it ourselves. Their goals came out of the blue, as Freiburg had little resistance from an opposition who weren’t really present in the game. They showed how a team can effectively defend a goal and support each other, which is exactly where we fell short today."