The long road to miracles
Bochum’s coach Letsch hopes for the World Cup winter
09/26/2022, 10:42 p.m
With a little impatience, but self-confident and confident, Thomas Letsch takes up his first post as Bundesliga coach at ailing VfL Bochum. After the separation from Thomas Reis, Letsch was the desired solution for the successor, explains club boss Hans-Peter Villis.
Thomas Letsch has set himself clear goals for his new job as coach of the troubled Bundesliga club VfL Bochum. “The entire focus is now on keeping VfL in the Bundesliga. I’m firmly convinced that we can do it together,” said the 54-year-old at his presentation on Monday: “Only seven games have been played.” Nevertheless, it is now important to “gradually get back to it and possibly make adjustments again in winter” before the long World Cup break, said Letsch, who comes from the Dutch first division club Vitesse Arnheim. VfL Bochum is bottom of the table with just one point from the first seven games, four points behind the relegation place.
“I’m well aware of the table situation,” said Letsch, whose two-year contract also applies to the second division. But sometimes it’s just a “small step”. There are “certainly easier tasks in the world”. But the “attraction to work at this club is huge. I feel absolutely in the right place,” said the native of Swabia. Letsch, who doesn’t see himself as a buddy (but communication is important to him), wants to focus on playing against the ball, which is actually well received in the Ruhr area. “We need a clear structure, compactness and a clear order against the ball,” explained the family man.
Letsch “got relatively little information about the players, it’s important to approach the matter impartially”. But Letsch, who had already worked for Erzgebirge Aue, Austria Wien and in various positions at RB Salzburg, made a few phone calls, including with the leaders, with the extroverted goalkeeper Manuel Riemann and captain Anthony Losilla. The new head coach will play his first game with the Revierelf on Saturday at RB Leipzig of all places.
“We are absolutely convinced that we have not gotten a firefighter in Thomas Letsch. We are planning the future with him,” said CEO Hans-Peter Villis. After the grueling separation from hero trainer Thomas Reis, which was accompanied by a lot of annoying background noise, he was the desired solution for the successor, explained Villis. “He will significantly help us to get the team back to how we know it.” For Patrick Fabian, the new Managing Director Sport, the relationship “was a good fit right from the start”. There is a “great consensus” when it comes to leadership style.