After missing out on the championship round, almost everyone at FC Zurich is dismayed. They speak of "pure disappointment" and sometimes contradict each other.
22.04.2025, 07:08
22.04.2025, 07:47
SDA
When Lindrit Kamberi steps in front of the reporters, he exhales audibly at first. And from the FCZ defender's sigh, you can already hear what he later verbalizes: "I'm disappointed. We had set our sights so high and now we're playing for 7th to 12th place. That's unbelievable, I would never have signed up for that at the start of the season."
Kamberi then disappears into the dressing room. There was "a big void" there, says his team-mate Bledian Krasniqi a little later. "It wasn't all bad, but in the end it wasn't enough. That's pure disappointment." However, the two players also agree: "When you look at the table at the end of the season, you're usually where you deserve to be."
FCZ were hoping for a similar scenario to last year. Back then, the team qualified for the championship round in sixth place and performed strongly there. With four wins, the Zurich side moved up two places and even qualified for the Conference League. Now the dream of the European Cup has been shattered at an early stage.
Lots of changes and background noise
"We were on the right track, we saw that the team can play football," says President Ancillo Canepa. After 14 rounds and only two defeats, FC Zurich were at the top of the table before the gradual relegation followed. Exclamation marks such as the away victories in Basel and Lugano were often immediately followed by disillusionment. Canepa also came to the conclusion that the team simply lacked consistency.
However, the fact that the team was so inconsistent was also down to the club and its transfer policy. Fans were shocked by the departure of crowd favorites such as Antonino Marchesano and Nikola Katic, especially in the winter. Other players such as Ifeanyi Mathew, Jonathan Okita and Nemanja Tosic were unceremoniously discarded. In Benjamin Mendy, on the other hand, the club signed a highly controversial figure who was accused of rape and acquitted for lack of evidence. An explanation from the club only followed after a public outcry and with great delay.
There was also a lot of other background noise. There was the scandal surrounding Labinot Bajrami, when his father threw an umbrella at the coach. There was the brief arrest of Daniel Denoon and the disciplinary action against Junior Ligue, who was excluded from the first team in the meantime. Episodes that individually would be a side note, but together form a turbulent overall picture.
There is disagreement on the subject of "unrest"
However, the club management does not want to hear about home-made unrest. Just like sporting director Milos Malenovic, who spoke of "stirring up trouble" at a press conference in February, Canepa also says: "The unrest was primarily a media issue. Of course we had certain incidents, but we managed them very quickly and put them behind us. It had no impact on our sporting performance."
Krasniqi sounds completely different. When asked what led to missing out on the championship round, the 23-year-old midfielder replied: "It's difficult to explain. It was a turbulent season with a lot of unrest." This came "from all sides", Krasniqi continued. "That certainly didn't do us any good, but I don't want to use that as an excuse. In the end, we stood on the pitch and gambled it away."
After the two different statements, the question goes to coach Moniz, who chooses a middle ground. Yes, there had been unrest, but it was mainly of a disciplinary nature. Within the club itself, however, things have always remained calm and a clear philosophy has always been pursued.
Time for self-reflection
One thing is certain: FC Zurich has already had to write off its big goal for the season, a place in the top 4. When asked who is responsible, Moniz names himself. "It's always the coach, that's our job." The 60-year-old Dutchman was unable and unwilling to say what this means for his future shortly after the end of the game. Canepa also kept a low profile: "We will certainly all sit down together and think about how we can best prepare for the new season."
FCZ have plenty of time, with five meaningless rounds on the program in May. These are games without relegation worries, but also without perspective. "Nothing is at stake for us anymore," says Kamberi. Just about honor. The team wants to bid a dignified farewell to the fans, who once again came along in large numbers in Bern, supported the team loudly and only showed their displeasure with whistles after the end of the game.
While the players make amends to the spectators, the club management can ask themselves what exactly went wrong during this season, which was so promising at times, and how a calmer environment can be created in future.
