"They can do it": Sander urges calm despite the defeat

The fact that Peer Jaekel was the first Magdeburg official to face the media in the mixed zone following the 1-6 debacle in the season opener against Eintracht Braunschweig carried symbolic significance. It seems that a sporting director doesn’t just step in front of the team and the coach—he also wants to nip any budding discussions about personnel, playing style, and attitude in the bud. 

Sander: “Unsettled from the very first minute”

“If you look at the first 90 minutes of the season, we couldn’t have gotten off to a worse start. The first 30 minutes leading up to the red card were worse for me than what came after,” Jaekel began—only to then admit that he had no explanation for the lackluster performance the team had shown.

Next up at the press conference was coach Petrik Sander. He began by apologizing for the performance—which was unusual enough—and then mercilessly rubbed salt in the wound: “We looked unsettled from the very first minute. I don’t know the reason—but I have a hunch. I think that one or two players had different expectations in their heads and ended up feeling bitterly disappointed.”

Couldn’t Find Their Rhythm

However, the sporting director, coach, and players all emphasized in unison that it was important not to “paint everything black” right now. “We’re confident in our approach.” Jaekel didn’t want to single out or exempt any specific positions from the disastrous performance. Magdeburg never managed to establish its possession-based game; on the contrary, it repeatedly made glaring passing errors that Braunschweig exploited with brutal efficiency. 

“What matters now is how we handle the situation. That’s what we need to do this week so that we can perhaps kick off the season anew for ourselves in Osnabrück,” explained vice-captain Tobias Müller. “We have to process this quickly; otherwise, a game like this could break a team,” he added.

Especially given the poor start to last season—which some Magdeburg players still have in the back of their minds—the team from Magdeburg urgently needs to regain its courage, precision, and pace before its first away game in Osnabrück. Sander ruled out any major roster changes: “We have this roster, and they can do it. The guys have already shown that.”