FC Schalke 04’s U19s lost to SC Paderborn in the final of the Westfalenpokal. Schalke coach Norbert Elgert clearly criticised his team afterwards.

FC Schalke 04’s U19s lost 1:2 (0:1) to SC Paderborn in the final of the Westfalenpokal at the Parkstadion in front of 1150 spectators.

Schalke coach Norbert Elgert sat on his bench for a long time after the final whistle and a team address, taking notes. There was obviously a lot to write down. Afterwards, he was not sparing in criticising his team: “That was a highly deserved victory for Paderborn. We were warned,” he said. “It is a team that is also individually on a par. And then, which is sad for us, the team that wants it a bit more in the end always prevails. And that wasn’t just a bit more, that was clearly more.”

Paderborn was more aggressive, more willing, more biting. The coach also saw it that way. “In the basic virtues, which I’ve been talking about for what feels like a thousand years, they were vastly superior to us,” Elgert agreed. “It’s disappointing when you see our senior players or overall that so little sticks. Only three per cent come through from the performance centres. For us it’s much more, and there are reasons for that. We will manage that again in the future. But at the moment it’s very, very little.”

He said the team had been given everything they needed to play successfully. “That is disappointing for us that in another final, where we have regenerated the team, where we have prepared them tactically for everything, also for the intensity of Paderborn, for their pressing. The fact that we counter so little speaks for the fact that the intrinsic motivation, or the basic virtues, are not strong enough to be able to make any demands, which most do.” His conclusion: “Demand a lot, demand a lot, but give back too little at the crucial moments. “

I hope that our boys feel the same way, that it hurts them too. I’m not always so sure about that.

Norbert Elgert

And unlike the DFB Cup final, in which the team put in a great performance but still lost 4-3 to Cologne, this time it was very disappointing: “Of course it hurts when you lose a second final within a very short time. But you have to be able to cope with that. I have won an incredible number of finals, many more than I have lost. But the pain of defeat remains.”

But he doesn’t know if his players feel the same: “I hope that our boys feel the same way, that it hurts them too. I’m not always so sure about that. It’s always dealt with incredibly quickly nowadays. Well, that’s just the way it is. But that’s today’s society, today’s generation,” said Elgert.

In the end, he said, it had not changed that those who overcame opposition such as a missed championship final or a lost DFB Cup final and performed would prevail. But that was not the case. “We have already been very surprised by our own team. Very, very negatively surprised.” The team had missed a great opportunity.