Third division club Rot-Weiss Essen had to go home from Münster empty-handed. Thomas Eisfeld spoke of a deserved defeat.

Thomas Eisfeld had a real cold start on Sunday: the 31-year-old was actually supposed to take a seat on the bench for the Westschlager between Preußen Münster and Rot-Weiss Essen, but then Essen’s Torben Müsel had to sit out after warming up and Eisfeld suddenly made it into RWE’s starting XI.

“It was only decided relatively late in the changing room with Torben. I think I’m experienced enough to do that, even if it took three or four minutes to really warm up the muscles. Basically, as a professional player, you always have to be ready to come on. It was a decent performance from me, even though I can play better,” explained Eisfeld after the final whistle in an interview in the catacombs.

The experienced former second division pro surely had imagined his comeback in the starting lineup in the 3rd division after almost five months differently: RWE conceded a 1:2 (1:1) defeat in Münster and missed the chance to move up to fourth place. The Prussians appeared more present and aggressive in the duels.

Eisfeld was able to confirm this impression. “We made far too many mistakes and conceded goals very easily, especially at the beginning of the second half. Overall, Münster was a bit more tenacious and aggressive. I got the feeling that they wanted the win a bit more. We didn’t perform well enough to take anything away from this game. That’s why it was a deserved defeat. We still have to learn that you just take a point with you when you don’t play that well. It was similar in Aue,“ explained the midfielder.
”I had the feeling that Münster won a lot of fifty-fifty balls. They went in there with the last bit of intensity and aggressiveness. But we’ve done really well so far this season and we can do better. Wipe your mouth off and move on. We have to analyze the game and then get the three points against Freiburg II. At home, we radiate a different intensity, which is of course also due to the fans.”

Speaking of the fans: Despite the bitter defeat in Münster, the players were given a rousing send-off by the 1,190 Essen fans who made the trip, with applause and chants. “That’s obviously very encouraging. There will always be setbacks. You can see what we’re planning to do. There’s a clear playing philosophy and DNA to be seen. Now it’s a matter of adjusting the finer details,” emphasized the veteran.