Hertha: I need to do it somehow, and I will! – Pál Dárdai

– Could they call off the tournament?
– Good question, said Pál Dárdai, head coach of Hertha BSS, in an interview with Nemzeti Sport in Berlin. – If I look at the league table, I wouldn't be sad if the season was over because our 15^th place is worth staying in the competition, but it's not a bed of roses. The fight continues, and we have to do a lot to stay in the Bundesliga next year as well.

– Last Saturday was your sixth match since you “sat back” on the senior team's bench and achieved the first victory was against Augsburg. You needed this win like a breath of fresh air, didn't you?
– We needed it – not primarily for me, but for Hertha because the club is the first in this story. We have one objective in mind, which is not to get eliminated! When I took over the team, I knew we were in a particularly difficult situation. We earned only one point in the first five games, although most of the time I felt like we were playing in the Champions League. With the exception of Stuttgart, we found ourselves against teams that are playing in the Champions League or are fighting for participating in it. Despite all this, we had one bad half in the five games, which of course, was in Stuttgart. Fortunately, after the first half, we managed to get ourselves together, and the match ended in a tie. At the same time, we suffered four “bearable” defeats against Bayern, Leipzig, Wolfsburg, and Frankfurt. For the record, these four teams are in the top four at the moment.

– Over the weekend, Augsburg also led by halftime. Weren't you afraid of another defeat?
– No! There were no complaints about our game in the first half, we rose above our opponents in almost every way, but that's not what the scoreboard said. In the second half we cranked up, we believed we could win, and even earned all three points. The guys deserved that success.

– What about the head coach?
– I was happy, of course, I was happy that we won, but how shall I put it... I used to be more stressed by games like this; the adrenaline worked so hard in me that it wasn't healthy anymore. Now I feel I'm not always in a flap, which might be better. I've learned halftime helps a lot. A coach can leap from the sidelines, can yell many things, but the players won't always hear everything. In the locker room, however, they sit quietly, and the message gets to them, not to mention that thanks to technology, it is immediately possible to show them what to do differently. This is what happened on Saturday. After we sorted everything out, everything worked out the way we had planned.

– Rumor has it that they also needed a motivational speech from you.
– There's no need to overreact. I tried to pump up the guys, and since I felt we missed taking risks, I told them I wanted to see them take risks in order to win. I took the risk with the substitutes, and they added theirs on the field. Football has an amazing psychology anyway. We knew what was at stake in the game against Augsburg, but I made it clear earlier in the week that I don't want to take the burden off the guys. In fact, I want them to feel the pressure. There was no problem until Thursday. They trained like it was a dream. Friday's practice didn't look good, and I even scratched my head: well, what's going to happen?! Before the kick-off, there was a motivational film, and in addition to the club staff, Gábor Király also encouraged the guys. Then, at second minute into the game, we were at a disadvantage... I also experienced it on my own as a player. They read us the moving messages from our family members, we got a little emotional, then we went onto the field, and lost... We can try a lot of things, but everything matters on the pitch only.

– If you compare the team that you took over at the end of January and the one that defeated Augsburg, what do you see?
– On one hand, we're heading in the right direction, and on the other hand, there's plenty of work to be done. One thing's for sure: I've never fought so much for team unity. It was a chaos when I arrived, the locker room spoke eight languages, and there was no leader. This is why I said no at first when the managers asked me to take over the team because this chaos was visible from the outside, too. Because I wasn't happy that I wasn't going to do it, we agreed that I sleep on it. The next morning, I concluded that I couldn't let Hertha down, and I listened to my heart instead of my head even if I pretty much just lose. However, I need to do it somehow, and I will! We look better now compared to weeks ago. The people of Berlin say that they are glad Hertha is fighting again and that the players can rejoice together. Besides, a lot of times I feel like an animator. Most of them fall in line now, but there are a few lads whom I have fights with. Team unity is sacred to me, so if anyone pushes the envelope for too long, there'll be consequences. I don't yell, I don't cause trouble, I'm just looking out of my head – until I lose it...

– What are your calculations; how many points do you need in the remaining ten rounds to stay in the competition?
– A lot. Two difficult matches are ahead of us – first, we'll go to Dortmund, then we'll welcome Leverkusen. We cannot lose both matches; it'd be nice to earn at least one point in one of them. It's a good sign that we've proven against Augsburg that we can do well under pressure, too. Also, we made our strong opponents sweat, so we aren't planning a pleasant sightseeing tour in Dortmund, but a feat that could mean a lot in our situation.

– In the past few weeks, have you ever thought that you shouldn't have had accepted the job?
– After returning to Hertha last summer, I was happy to train the U16 team. Things were going well, but this damn coronavirus sabotaged us, too. Over time I realized I miss the weekend matches. Perhaps even fate wanted to me go back to the first team. I happily go down to the pitch every day, and my impression is that what I'm imagining is working. If it stays that way until the end of May, we'll have a nice summer.

BUNDESLIGA
ROUND 24
Hertha–Augsburg 2–1(Piatek 62., Lukebakio 87. – 11-esből, ill. Bénes 2.)