“We don’t feel pressure” | OneFootball

Ahead of the meeting with Freiburg, Albert Riera discusses the fans, the table, flexibility and a possible start for Jonathan Burkardt.

It’s eighth against seventh as Eintracht host SC Freiburg at Deutsche Bank Park on Sunday evening (kick-off 17:30 CET). The Eagles have the chance to leapfrog the visitors in the table with a win.At his pre-match press conference, head coach Albert Riera discussed… … Sunday’s home match: “We’re sure that Deutsche Bank Park will be full. That fully motivates all of us. I want the fans to feel proud of the way we play. Of course we want results, but it’s also about how you do things, so that the people identify with our football.”

… Jonathan Burkardt: “Jonathan is in fantastic shape. He’s been working very well lately. We’ll decide tomorrow who will start, but he’s able. We could also see that against Bayern.”

… his team selection: “Sometimes I take decisions not only tactically or technically, but they also depend on the understanding of what I expect. I’m always telling the players: tell me what you want, please ask why we’re doing these things. Today, for example, we did a new exercise on filtering passing, where you can’t play in a back corridor, you can only play in front. Afterwards we talk about the reasons. It’s the same with selection decisions.” 

… the table: “I’m not focused on the table. I want to improve every individual. If the individual improves, the team improves. If the team improves, the points will come.”… on the battle with fellow European hopefuls Freiburg: “It’s always three points, regardless of who we play against. We want to win as many of the games as possible until the international break. We don’t feel pressure because we’re just focused on the things we can control: doing as many good things as possible in every game, showing the right intensity and attitude, and following a clear plan with and without the ball.”

… flexibility: “We’re talking about new positions for Ritsu Doan, Nene Brown, Arnaud Kalimuendo… In our system, the wingers are not only staying on the line – they are the second strikers. I love it when players can play in different positions. I’m not just preparing my players to play in one position, but I want to take them to another level, ideally where they can do three roles. So if I see that a player can do that, I try to get that out of them.”

… set pieces: “Set pieces make up about 30 percent of football. That’s a lot, so you need to work on it. But the behaviour of the players is more important than the positioning. You can have the best positioning in the world, but if someone is soft, you will concede goals. The players are concentrated and they know exactly what they have to do.”