FCB president David Degen makes it clear in an interview with blue Sport that the club is fully behind Stephan Lichtsteiner. They are "definitely" going into the new season with him as coach.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Stephan Lichtsteiner's start as FCB coach was sobering.
- However, FCB boss David Degen makes it clear in an interview with blue Sport that they are fully behind Lichtsteiner and will "definitely" start the new season with him.
- The goal for the current season is clear: at least third place at the end.
Stephan Lichtsteiner's record as FCB coach is extremely poor: Of the first eleven games under his leadership, Basel lost six, drew once and won only four. At least last year's double winners confirmed their upward trend on Sunday against Servette with their third win in four games.
Lichtsteiner, however, started the season with three heavy defeats: first there was the 0:1 home defeat against Viktoria Pilsen, which sealed the team's exit from the Conference League, followed by the 1:2 home defeat against leaders Thun, which put an end to their championship dreams, and then Basel also lost to St. Gallen in the Cup quarter-finals. Within a few days, all their goals for the season were gone.
FCB boss Degen is still convinced that a change of coach was needed. The timing could be discussed, but he does not want to take part in these discussions. "All the experts always know better anyway, but they always analyze with hindsight. He sees it as "ultra-positive" that Lichtsteiner was prepared to take over the team ahead of three such important games. "Over 90 percent of the coaches who would have been considered would have said: I'll be head coach after these three games and not before these three games."
"We are fully behind him, 100 percent!"
Degen says he takes his hat off to Lichtsteiner for daring to take on this task as a young coach in his first professional position, because it shows character. "Sure, he makes the odd mistake, but everyone makes mistakes. We are fully behind him, 100 percent! We believe in his qualities. I know that he has exactly what I expect from an FC Basel coach."
This also includes the quality of being able to deal with pressure, as this is "enormous" in Basel. And even if there's no such thing as a job guarantee in modern football, Degen still offers one. When asked whether Lichtsteiner is a safe bet for the new season, Degen says: "That's definitely clear. We have a long-term plan with him."
"Basel should actually be in the European tournament every year"
In the interview with blue Sport, Degen also talks about the importance of European business for FC Basel. He lets it be known that the club is not financially dependent on being represented internationally. But: "FC Basel actually has to be in Europe every year. I have always said that a group stage of the Conference League should be possible every year. [...] We have to make sure we finish third."
