Pellegrino Matarazzo on…
…his return to Hoffenheim: “I’m delighted to see a lot of familiar faces. I’ve been living in this region for many years so I have an emotional connection too. I’ve already worked with many people here and I’m looking forward to my next chapter with TSG.”
…the mood within the TSG squad: “My perception is that the team is very ready. They know what needs to be done. They are very receptive and open to input. The players are very energetic.”
…this team: “We have to get the ball moving – always with great purpose. We don’t want to have 65% possession – we want to get to the goal quickly. The strength of this team lies in its attack.”
…his time out following his dismissal in Stuttgart: “I spent the first few weeks clearing out the cellar and taking the dog for walks. I was looking for some distance from football. I felt the desire to get back to football relatively quickly. In mid-January, I had the urge to get going again. But it’s not as though I took the next opportunity. It was the moment when TSG inquired that I thought to myself: ‘This is it.’ I had a very good feeling and didn’t hesitate when the request came.”
…himself as a coach: “My approach is a mix of analysis and good people management. I always try to have my antennae out in order to manage the energy within the team properly. You can’t be different as a coach to how you are in private.”
…the first steps with the team: “We want to revive the TSG idea of football. The first team talk and the first session make me confident. We all know the potential in this team. We want to stay in the division and then take the next steps.”
…the coaching staff: “It has always been a feature of TSG that there is a strong coaching staff. I’ve met some people I already knew, but also some new faces. I’m very happy with the current coaching team.”
…his approach as the new TSG coach: “First of all, we must make ourselves defensively compact again. We mustn’t forget where our strengths lie. We’re allowed to be brave, we’re also allowed to make mistakes, but the reaction then needs to be right. When our heads are clear and we play with more courage again, we’ll win games again.”
Alexander Rosen on…
…the decision to appoint Pellegrino Matarazzo: “We never lost contact. I’m delighted that he is with us again. We last won a Bundesliga match in October. It is the second time within a certain timeframe that we’ve been on a long winless run. Under a lot of pressure, we sat down together after the decision to switch coaches. We worked on solutions in a very team-oriented way. We want to show TSG’s face again. We agreed quickly that Rino is a coach who suits us perfectly. He knows the club and the players. He has a way of dealing with people and understanding football that suits us very well. Rino is full of energy – and he doesn’t have a long commute either.”
…Matarazzo’s history with TSG: “We already had a very good collaboration with Rino from 2017 onwards. After half a year, we promoted him from the U17s to first-team assistant coach and he already had a positive influence in a short period of time. We knew very well and very quickly what a good coach Rino is.”
…his move to VfB back then: “I still remember clearly that he reached me while I was on holiday and informed me of Stuttgart’s request. We really regretted his departure at the time. But it was also clear: developing within your own club its different to developing elsewhere and then returning. Rino’s development has been impressive and we’re happy that his path has led him back to us.”
…his discussions with the new coach: “I needed to explain very little to Rino about Hoffenheim because he knows how the club ticks. We talked about his last years and about our situation. It will always be part of the TSG DNA to develop talent. Young players have also been deployed in recent weeks – that is part of our identity. Rino has already worked here under these circumstances. But the principle of maximum ambition applies too. After this collapse, it will initially just be a case of assessing the situation and moving forward.”
…the current situation in the table: “It’s a challenging situation. From a mental viewpoint, it’s completely different to be in this situation from the beginning than to slip into it gradually after good performances initially. Nobody here takes anything lightly. Everyone needs to look at what they can do to ensure we get results.”
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