Hansa Rostock Ronald Maul backs Breitenreiter ahead of Großaspach match, Digi Mart USA News: Hansa Rostock are in a downward spiral in the German third division, with only one win, three defeats and a draw since André Breitenreiter took over as coach. Nevertheless, club chief executive Ronald Maul has publicly backed the team and its coach, while stepping back from the club’s season target of promotion.
“We are convinced of our path and our squad,” Maul said before the home match against SG Sonnenhof Großaspach, which kicks off at 2 p.m. and is being broadcast on the NDR Livecenter.
He conceded, however, that “we are lagging behind our ambitions. We analyze the sporting situation every day, and nothing is being glossed over.”
After a 2-0 win at Würzburg in Breitenreiter’s league debut, Rostock lost three matches and drew one. The club has scored only two goals in that stretch.
Most recently, Hansa lost 1-2 at Jahn Regensburg. The team currently sits eleventh in the table with 16 points, and the direct promotion places are ten points away.
Maul avoided directly naming promotion as the season goal. “Hansa Rostock will always be an ambitious club.
But it is also clear that in the current situation we do not have to talk about the season target every week,” said the 53-year-old. “The full focus is now on Großaspach, and no one should be thinking further ahead.
We are deliberately setting all other goals aside.”
The chief executive hopes that Breitenreiter and the team will have closed the gap to the top places by the winter break. “Of course I hope we will be within striking distance by the winter break, but we do not need to address that right now,” Maul said.
“What matters is delivering performance from game to game and bringing quality onto the pitch.”
That challenge begins against Großaspach, currently 18th in the table. “I believe in the lads,” Breitenreiter said.
He will again have to do without goalkeeper Luca Unbehaun, who is dealing with back problems, so Philipp Klewin will again stand in goal.
After the defeat in Regensburg, Rostock have slipped into the lower half of the 3. Liga table.
A win against Sonnenhof-Großaspach is now absolutely essential.
The Danish player was out for a long stretch early in the season and will once again be unavailable to the Mecklenburg club.
