Vedad Ibisevic has more training camps in his bones than any of his colleagues, that is what the role of age president at Hertha BSC entails. The units in Florida under Jürgen Klinsmann, the new coach of the Bundesliga soccer team, represented a completely new experience even for the experienced attacker.
“I have to say: it was very tough,” said Ibisevic after the second test match of the business trip to the USA, a 2-1 win against Eintracht Frankfurt. Then the 34-year-old added: “But we feel that this will help us.” Even if it was difficult to fight the weaker self – or: precisely because of that.
Klinsmann would have preferred to fly to Spain with Hertha
Especially at the end of the units, Werner Leuthard, the newly installed fitness guru, had no mercy on the professionals. Compared to Klinsmann’s predecessors Pal Dardai and Ante Covic, the training lasted noticeably long, usually well over 120 minutes. But that didn’t stop Leuthard from ending the morning with robust lines and other torments. In doing so, he followed the instructions of his superior.
Klinsmann had already announced before the flight to Orlando: “We have busy weeks ahead of us. We now have to do more than others. ”For this reason, he would have loved to postpone the business trip to his adopted home at short notice and would have liked to fly to Spain with the team instead. Klinsmann’s argument: Hertha would have had two more training days to prepare for the uncertainties of the second half of the season.
From this point of view, one surprising fact in Orlando was that, apart from the day of arrival, Berliners only entered the football field in the morning. The organization of the afternoon and evening was largely up to the professionals. Klinsmann explained this at the beginning of the training camp with the experiences he gained during his active time.
“It was always good for me when I had coaches who gave me freedom to run. Then I knew that I am responsible for what I deliver as an athlete, ”he said. “We want to encourage them to make their own decisions. I hope that you have a lot of fun with it. “
The main thing is to hand over responsibility, Klinsmann continued. “We want to give the boys a free hand, they’re all grown up people,” he said. “What you do in the afternoon, whether you go out to eat somewhere or go to Disney World, is completely up to you. When we see them, it’s good, if not – okay too. ”The majority of the players knew how to make use of these unimagined freedoms: some hired themselves out at Universal Studios, others attended NBA professional basketball games, and still others played mini golf.
Klinsmann seals off his team in Berlin again
In addition, there were two binding appointments that the traveling group attended: in addition to a home game for the Orlando Magic against the Brooklyn Nets, this also included a joint dinner on the yacht of investor Lars Windhorst, who is currently in Florida. For this, the Berliners took on a good 260 kilometers and a three-hour bus ride to Saint Petersburg. “If the partner is around the corner, we of course gladly took this opportunity,” said Klinsmann. Hertha also traveled to the city on Tampa Bay for the test against Frankfurt Eintracht.
In the coming days after his return to Berlin, the Swabian world man from California will seal himself and his team off: The test match against Pogon Stettin on Sunday will take place in camera – and training on Schenckendorffplatz this week is only on Wednesday for Accessible to visitors and interested parties.
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