VfL Bochum have made a mess of their Bundesliga opener. Sports director Marc Lettau gives insight into the reappraisal and talks about the squad.
Shortly after the start of the Bundesliga, VfL Bochum has closed another gap in the squad. Keven Schlotterbeck, who was already on loan from SC Freiburg in the last second half of the season, returns to Castroper Straße for another season.
After Noah Loosli and Bernardo, the 26-year-old is already the third new addition to the central defence, where head coach Thomas Letsch can also rely on Ivan Ordets, Erhan Masovic and the young Tim Oermann, who is currently injured and a candidate for a loan.
But sporting director Marc Lettau does not see an oversupply in the defensive centre. “We have planned from the beginning to start the season with five centre-backs,” he explained on Tuesday. Due to suspensions or injuries, this number of players will be needed for the defensive centre, Lettau said, especially if Bochum stick to a three-man backline throughout the season.
While the defensive needs are covered after Schlotterbeck’s signing, a new striker could still come to the Ruhr area before the end of the transfer period on 1 September. In any case, a transfer would not fail because of the lost income due to the DFB Cup exit. “In principle, we are still able to act,” said Lettau.
This is far too little to be able to survive in this league.
Marc Lettau on the 0:5 in Stuttgart
However, a possible new arrival would have to lead to an increase in squad quality, the 37-year-old continued. “We are very happy with the personnel we have at our disposal. One or two players are not in form right now, but will still help us in the season. We have to work especially on leading the boys to their old performance level.”
Lettau reiterated three days later that what Bochum showed in the 5-0 debacle against VfB Stuttgart was not fit for the Bundesliga. In the meantime, he had digested the bitter defeat. Meanwhile, he is still “processing and drawing conclusions”. “As usual, we went into analysis with the boys the next day. That will continue over the next few days, with lots of dialogue. “
There are several possible explanations for the performance. A look at the statistics alone reveals a few things: for example, that no team ran less than the VfL (107.69 kilometres) on the first match day. Or that the number of sprints completed (168) was far below the average value of the previous season (230). “That is far too few to be able to compete in this league.”
In this respect, a significant increase is needed when Borussia Dortmund visit the Ruhrstadion on Saturday (3.30pm, RS live ticker). “We want to win every game. No matter whether it’s against BVB or in Stuttgart,” says Lettau ahead of the duel with the runners-up. And with the help of the principles “that made us strong last season”.