After the two-week international break, the numbers have increased 1.FC Magdeburg Saturday (13.00) at Fortuna Düsseldorf returns to the 2nd league. Blue and white facts after 12 games: The bottom team has by far scored the fewest goals (9) and has the worst goal difference (-13) in the league.
It’s clear that the team carries a mental burden of fear of relegation and self-doubt. The question is whether they can finally let go of this burden?
Someone is sure of that! Club icon Wolfgang Seguin (80, 1974 EC winner): “I have been an optimist all my life. And I assumed that we would still be in the second division at the end of the season. I didn’t think about anything else.”
Former national player Wolfgang Seguin is a regular at the Avnet Arena
A clear statement also supported by FCM’s record player (534 competitive games) after the change of coach from Fiedler to Sander: “I was there for the 0-1 defeat against Paderborn. And I didn’t get the impression that the last man was playing against the first man. On the contrary, we were the better team. The play between the penalty areas looked very good and showed that there was quality. But you could also see that we still couldn’t put it all together up front. And at the back “The opponents will make a fool of us the first time we attack. If you had confidence, this would not have happened.”
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Confidence! That was the topic discussed last Wednesday at the Hundertwasserhaus at the presentation of retro jerseys for FCM’s 60th anniversary. Seguin about his conversation with Baris Atik mainstay player (30) and Dominik Reimann (28): “I told the players that I have a lot of confidence in them and that they will get their cars out of the mud. But I also told them that the team was too calm during the game because there had to be more shots.”
Seguin (3 x champion, 6 x cup winner) on his own experience in crisis management: “Of course, today it is almost only our success that is reported. But we also had a phase at that time where things were not going well. Then Captain Zapf gathered the team and we completely agreed with each other’s opinions.”
His tip for Reimann and Atik: “Kids, gather internally, come together, debate, speak cruelly and frankly. Then go out, look forward and do what you want.”
