Rot-Weiss Essen have had a strong season: seventh place in the 3rd division and victory in the Lower Rhine Cup. Ali Bilgin warns against expecting too much.
Ali Bilgin was born in Essen on December 17, 1981. He spent his childhood in Bergeborbeck. The Bilgin family has lived in Istanbul for a good ten years now.
He also follows his former club Rot-Weiss Essen very closely from Turkey. Most recently, he attended the last league home game in 2023/2024 at the stadium on Hafenstrasse – together with the RWE promotion team from 2004.
In his active career, Bilgin played for Rot-Weiss Essen, Antalyaspor, Fenerbahce, Kayserispor, Kasimpasa, Göztepe and Sportfreunde Lotte. Bilgin played 96 professional games (19 goals) for RWE, played 85 times (10 goals) in the Süper Lig and played ten games (one goal) for Lotte in the Regionalliga.
Forecasting spoke to Bilgin about RWE’s season – and also took a look ahead to the new season.
Ali Bilgin, can Rot-Weiss Essen be satisfied with the 2023/2024 season?
There are two sides to that, of course: One side is that every RWE fan would have signed off on this result before the start of the season. Some would even have said that a fifth or fourth place was not even possible. But the other side is that Rot-Weiss Essen played a great season and showed nerves of steel on matchdays 34 and 35. They lost both in Sandhausen and against 1860 Munich and thus missed a great opportunity. I’m sure it’s not just the fans who are a little disappointed, but also the managers and players. I was a professional myself and know what it’s like when you’re close, want to go for it and then fail. That hurts a lot. But RWE were able to lick their wounds a little with the win in the Lower Rhine Cup. That was important
It’s always more difficult to confirm a good season. Expectations will rise. I know my crazy Essen fans. After a season like this, nobody will be satisfied with a single-digit place in the table or staying in the league. The RWE fans have also tasted blood.
Ali Bilgin
In the last home game against 1860, you were in the stadium together with your colleagues from 2004. Back then, RWE was promoted. What was going through your mind when you were celebrated by the fans before the game?
That was amazing. I grew up in Bergeborbeck and have known RWE all my life. It’s always like coming home for me. It’s a shame that this team didn’t get promoted 20 years later, which would have been the perfect time.
Maybe next season then. What do you think?
I would wish it from the bottom of my heart for Rot-Weiss. But it’s always more difficult to confirm a good season. Expectations will rise. I know my crazy Essen fans. After such a season, nobody will be satisfied with a single-digit place in the table or staying in the league. The RWE fans have also tasted blood. You need people who can stand firm under pressure. Rot-Weiss Essen definitely need to bring in players with a mentality. This might have been missing in Sandhausen and against 1860 Munich.
What kind of future do you predict for RWE?
The structures at Rot-Weiss Essen are changing, as are the people involved. Marcus Uhlig is leaving, as is Sascha Peljhan. The newcomers will have to integrate quickly and make good decisions. It’s not going to be easy. Because you don’t have time in Essen. It’s the result that counts – and preferably very quickly. I don’t want to predict anything, but I’m curious to see how things will go at Hafenstrasse. I’ll continue to follow everything with great interest from Istanbul and via Forecasting.de