Seoane ahead of #FCUBMG: “We’re preparing for different scenarios”

Head coach Gerardo Seoane answered journalists’ questions ahead of the Foals’ Bundesliga game at 1. FC Union Berlin on Saturday (15:30 CET). Here are his most important quotes.

Head coach Gerardo Seoane on...

...the squad situation: Elvedi, Čvančara, Koné, Hack and Wöber are all doubts. Max hasn’t trained for a week. We’ll decide after the final session if he’s fit enough for the match. Manu already had a muscle issue before the Wolfsburg game. He’s been having treatment without training over the last two days. We’ll have to decide along with the medical team how big the risk is with him. With Nico Elvedi, we’ll have to see how much he’s recovered. Tomáš has an issue with his lower leg and still needs to be checked. Robin Hack’s been ill. We’ll have to see if he gets better in time to travel with the team to Berlin.

...the day off on Thursday: We weren’t on the training pitch on Thursday, but 16 players were still there to have treatment or to train individually. The main reason why we didn’t train was to give the boys a chance to recover mentally. The Pokal game was not just physically but also psychologically draining, because the boys had to stay concentrated and focussed over 120 minutes.

...Florian Neuhaus’ chances of getting in the team: There is a lot of competition in central midfield and Flo will have to fight for his place. We of course hope that his brilliant assist in the last minute of the Pokal game will give him even more energy for the tasks ahead. Flo is one of a group of players who can justifiably hope to start in Berlin. But we’ll decide who’s going to start after the final training session.

...the opposition: Union are very physically robust, extremely dangerous from set pieces and are always backed by their fans in home games. After their poor start to the season, Union will clearly be looking to improve. When a new coach comes in, there's always a change and a bit of a shake-up. You could already see that in the first game under Nenad Bjelica. But it’s hard to read anything into that game. We’re not going to assume that they’ll play exactly like they did in Braga, because they’ve had ten days to get to know each other. The new coach will have his own ideas and vision of how to set up the team and the system, so we’re preparing for different scenarios.

...the importance of the opening stage of the game: I’m expecting Union to push forward with lots of energy and power from the offset. We’ll need to hold them off from the start, be completely present in the game and get stuck in from the first minute. Of course, we also want to create some momentum going forward ourselves.

...Nathan Ngoumou: Our squad has two number nines in Tomáš Čvančara und Jordan. If both of them are out of action, we’ll need to find replacements. Nathan is definitely not the number one choice to go up front, as he’s better suited on the wing. However, he’s willing to adapt to playing in the number nine role for the benefit of the team.

...Rocco Reitz’s development: In order for the club to head in the direction we want it to, it’s vital that players get the opportunity to come up from the academy. That’s something that we’re keen to offer young players here. The boys then have to seize that opportunity with both hands by showing desire, being energetic, and proving their technical ability. Rocco is a good example of how your journey into the first team isn’t always entirely conventional. He’s proven that you can achieve your goals, even if you go off track at times. Rocco has carved out his place in the team through his performances in training, his mentality, and his enthusiasm. He’s doing really well at gegenpressing at the moment, as he plays with aggression and is willing to put in the hard yards. It’s now down to him to continue performing well and develop his game even further.

...the DFB-Pokal quarter-final draw on Sunday: We’re happy that we’re still in hat for the next round. I’ll be very relaxed while watching the draw on Sunday. Whilst I’d be happy if we get given another home game, we can’t influence what happens and will deal with whatever comes our way.