Why the Thun System Continues to Work Despite Several Departures

FC Thun still has every chance of reaching the third qualifying round. Against the favored Croatian champions, the team was even leading until the 86th minute and came close to a victory.

Captain Marco Bürki was correspondingly upbeat after the game. “For a first game, it was very good,” said the 33-year-old, “the new players fit in great right away. It was a very refreshing performance.” But Bürki also knows that not everything went perfectly yet. “We knew the pressure would come in the second half. We really didn’t want to let them push us back.”

Valmir Matoshi offered a similar analysis. The 23-year-old midfielder acknowledged that, as a team, they still need to implement their principles even better. But: “It was a new situation. That’s why I’m all the more proud of the team for handling it so well.”

Privitelli Continues on His Path

In fact, Thun’s performance deserves even higher praise when you consider the summer transfers. Key players such as Leonardo Bertone, Elmin Rastoder, Kastriot Imeri, and Ethan Meichtry left the club, and even successful coach Mauro Lustrinelli—who led Thun to promotion and the championship title—sought a new challenge in the Bundesliga.

Yet the many changes had no noticeable effect on Thun’s play. The team from the Bernese Oberland played just as they had last season, creating chance after chance even against the favored Dinamo.

Much of Tuesday night’s performance was based on the groundwork laid earlier, particularly in terms of depth and directness, said new coach Gian-Luca Privitelli after the game. “It would be a mistake to come to a place where fantastic work has been done and do everything differently.” The team had discussed what they definitely wanted to keep from last season.

When asked about the fact that Thun is still playing just as well as last season despite the departures, Matoshi said: “I think that’s one of our strengths. We don’t need big names on our team. The players we have here are top-notch, and we work well with them. They all have the FC Thun DNA, and even the new players have established themselves in no time.”

The fact that the system continues to work should give Privitelli and his team cause for optimism ahead of next Tuesday’s second leg. One thing is already clear, however—it won’t be an easy game.

Disadvantage on paper

This is mainly because Thun is set to kick off the Super League season against Lucerne this weekend, while Dinamo Zagreb has a break until the second leg. “We’ll make the best of it—no excuses,” says Privitelli. Nevertheless, it’s clear from his comments that the circumstances could work against them. “We need to recover well. They don’t have a league game—that’s certainly unfortunate in terms of scheduling.”

We’ll see in a week whether this disadvantage—which exists on paper—will also be reflected in the match. Privitelli summed things up optimistically after the game: “We’re dangerous when we play our game well. And we still have room for improvement, but we’re already right in the mix. That makes me feel positive.” Matoshi also sounded optimistic immediately after the final whistle: “I’m confident in our abilities—I believe we can win there, too.”