Bundesliga team VfL Bochum is hoping for a surprise coup at Union Berlin. RevierSport spoke to Kevin Stöger ahead of the game.
When Kevin Stöger scored his third goal of the season on a penalty kick to level the score at 1-1 in the 58th minute of the home game against VfB Stuttgart, all VfL Bochum fans at Castroper Straße were hoping for a successful comeback for head coach Thomas Letsch’s team.
The afternoon ended in disappointment, however, as VfL lost the relegation thriller 3-2 and missed a big step towards staying in the relegation zone. The upcoming task will not be any easier for the 15th in the table.
On the contrary, Bochum will host top team Union Berlin on Sunday (April 16, 5:30 p.m.). The “Eisernen” have not yet lost a single home game and Bochum is the second-weakest team in the league away from home.
Not the very best of prerequisites, but midfielder and top performer Kevin Stöger (29) is nevertheless confident about the next task. RevierSport spoke to the Austrian:
But we’re strong as a team and definitely won’t let ourselves go crazy – whether from the outside or from poor performances. Quite the opposite: now more than ever!
Kevin Stöger.
Kevin Stöger, shortly after your converted penalty against Stuttgart, the team conceded two goals in just over two minutes along the same lines. Do you have an explanation for that in retrospect?
We came back into the game with the 1:1. Something like that can’t happen to us in the next few minutes. We let in the crosses too easily and weren’t careful in the middle. After my penalty goal, I went straight for the ball and wanted to send a signal so that it would go forward. We definitely have to do that better next time.
How do you personally feel about the constant ups and downs this season and how do you deal with setbacks like against Schalke or Stuttgart?
Exactly, we’ve already had a few neck blows this season. But we’re strong as a team and definitely don’t let ourselves go crazy – regardless of whether it’s from the outside or from poor performances. On the contrary: Now more than ever! We could have taken a big step towards staying in the class, but unfortunately we didn’t manage to do that. Nevertheless, we have everything in our own hands and want to do better on Sunday.
An almost insurmountable task awaits you at the “Alte Försterei”. Union is unbeaten at home. What gives you hope for a surprise, though?
We know that Union is very strong at home. But as we all know, every series breaks at some point. I hope we can beat Union. But it will be a very, very difficult game. We’ll have to go all out, put in our best performance and also need a bit of luck. I think we’ll be able to take something home with us.
You beat Union Berlin 2-1 in the first leg. How should you approach the second leg?
We won the first leg – deservedly so, in my opinion – and we know how Union plays. They cross a lot and come from standard situations. We have to defend in the same way as in the three games before the Stuttgart game. That’s the only way it will work. We need a very strong team performance, but we must also not focus too much on the opponent. I think we’re a very nasty team ourselves. fn with gp