FC Winterthur are last in the Super League ahead of their home game against Grasshoppers on Saturday. Head of Sport Oliver Kaiser explains why the situation is not as delicate as it seems.
FC Winterthur have recently suffered five defeats in a row and are bottom of the table. How do you assess the current situation?
Oliver Kaiser: We knew from the start that the season would be very difficult. We also thought that before last season, although the league constellation was slightly different and in the end a lot went in our favor at certain moments. We had a great preparation, then Nishan Burkart and other players dropped out shortly before the start of the championship. In terms of injuries, we've struggled a bit in recent weeks, with four U21 players in the squad at times. In the meantime, the squad situation has changed to the extent that we unfortunately can't include one or two players in the match squad. We had a very difficult start, but have improved in recent weeks and are now very confident that we will soon find our feet.
How do you perceive the mood in the team?
The mood is good, and that's important. That's why we always make sure that the players have the right character and work together as a team. You can see that now: the boys pull together and stick together. There is a very good dynamic. That also gives me and everyone at the club confidence - even if we are disappointed at the moment.
One problem so far, perhaps the biggest, has been scoring goals. At the same time, the five goals scored in eight league games have been offset by 16 goals conceded. What is the main problem?
A lot of things often come together in a situation like this, and scoring goals is the hardest part. With the departures of Sayfallah Ltaief, Samuel Ballet, Aldin Turkes and Adrian Gantenbein, among others, we lost an incredible number of scoring points from last season. In addition, Nishan Burkart has not yet been on the pitch this season. That's a considerable amount of the scoring points from last season. We can't sign ready-made Super League players, so you have to give the new players some time to adapt to the conditions of this league and to grow in the games. In view of the squad situation, we haven't yet managed to strike a balance between defense and offense. The performances in the last two games make us very optimistic, even if the 1:4 against YB doesn't look like it on paper.
Also thanks to the signing of Labinot Bajrami, who has scored twice in his first two games?
Of course. Labinot has great potential and is a typical nine-man. But you have to be careful. The boy is only 19 years old, so we can't expect him to perform week in, week out. Labinot also fits very well into our team as a type, and if we function as a whole team, Labinot, like all the other players, can show off his individual quality even better.
Winterthur have been sent off three times in their last seven league games - is that a coincidence?
I don't want to go into great detail about refereeing decisions, even if you can critically question one or two of them when you look at comparable actions in other games. We have to look at ourselves. It's clear that the individual actions that led to the sending-offs should not have happened.
Together with the points of those injured so far, the team is 72 scorer points short of last season's total. How serious are the departures of Adrian Gantenbein, Sayfallah Ltaief and Marvin Keller?
As a rule, players who have been successful leave the club. It is therefore clear that the departures weigh heavily. But once again: we know who we are, where we belong and what we can do. We are a team and are trying to compensate for the losses together. That's what we're doing and that's our focus.
You've been Head of Sport at FC Winterthur since 2017. Have you ever experienced a situation similar to the one you're in now?
The year I became head of sport. We were second last in the Challenge League and Wohlen withdrew (2017/18 season - ed.). We then underwent a transformation the following season. Since promotion, our main priority has been to stay in the league; in our first Super League season, we only achieved this on the last matchday.
What is the plan to get out of this somewhat delicate situation?
The situation is not that delicate. Sure, we're last and haven't picked up any points in a few games. But it wouldn't make sense to rush into things. The squad looks completely different now, and there are still 30 games to play. If you watch us in training, you can see that the quality of training has improved considerably with the increasing quality across the board. The better personnel situation, also thanks to some late transfers and the associated competition, gives the coach additional options and the opportunity to react. That is important.
Were you surprised by the poor start to the season after the good preparation with lots of wins and the last four test matches without conceding a goal?
Not at all. On the one hand, they were lower-ranked opponents, but on the other, we knew from the day we qualified for the championship round last season that we weren't in for an easy season.
On Saturday we face Grasshoppers, who are in 8th place with four points more - a key game?
Not at all. GC is one of 30 games still to come. Of course we want a win, also because it gives us confidence. That's why every game is important for us, not just the GC match.
SDA