Heidenheim’s Struggles Deepen as Abstiegskampf Accelerates
Frank Schmidt, manager of 1. FC Heidenheim, has issued a stark assessment of his team’s situation as the relegation battle intensifies in the Bundesliga. "Overall, we’re simply not good enough. We need to be honest with ourselves about that. We’re not capable of winning games in the Bundesliga right now. It’s not enough," said Schmidt following a 0-2 defeat to 1. FSV Mainz 05.
After a morale-boosting victory in the UEFA Conference League playoffs against FC Copenhagen, Heidenheim has succumbed to a fifth consecutive Bundesliga defeat. The widening gap of seven points to safety has heightened the anxieties within the club.
"We should’ve taken the lead if we wanted anything from this game," Schmidt stated. "Everyone gave it their all, but we barely created clear-cut chances."
The manager listed a litany of deficiencies: "We lacked vision, precision, quality, determination, and execution. In our debut season in the Bundesliga, we benefited from a certain level of ‘puppy protection’ and perhaps weren’t taken seriously in every situation. That’s no longer the case."
Heidenheim had previously prevailed in the reverse fixture against Mainz. It was their third victory of the season, back on Matchday 5. Since then, the team has endured a severe downturn in form, only managing one additional win.
"It’s the same thing week after week," lamented goalkeeper Kevin Müller on DAZN. "We’re too harmless in attack and lack quality in finishing. Defensively, we’re also struggling."
"We need to be honest with ourselves and address these issues head-on. We have 12 games left to prevent relegation back to the second division," Schmidt acknowledged.
Heidenheim currently sits in the relegation playoff spot, level on points with 17th-placed VfL Bochum. Last-placed Holstein Kiel is only a point behind.
"It would be unwise to talk about catching up to anyone at this stage. Our immediate priority is to hold onto our position. And that’s going to be extremely difficult," said Schmidt. "The quality of our attacking play needs to improve significantly."
The manager admitted that shaking off the negative experiences has become a challenge. "We’ll probably receive more emails from sports psychologists offering their services. We’ve been getting them recently. But I can’t help but wonder: why didn’t we need them in previous years?"
Heidenheim will return to European action on Thursday for the second leg of their Conference League tie against Copenhagen. A victory would secure their passage to the Round of 16. In the Bundesliga, they will then face a daunting away fixture against RB Leipzig.
