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The Eintracht Frankfurt manufacturer talks about the challenges of the new season, the consequences of the Corona crisis and possible changes.
Anyone unfamiliar with Fredi Bobic because of the VfB Stuttgart magic triangle probably knows him as the sporting director of Eintracht Frankfurt. The former center forward, feared alongside Giovane Elber and Krassimir Balakov in Stuttgart’s offensive trio, has put the Hessian club back on the road to success.
The former DFB national player has managed Frankfurt since 2016 and has brought players such as Ante Rebic, Luka Jovic, Kevin-Prince Boateng and Filip Kostic to the club. In an interview with t-online, Bobic talks about the current challenges, a soccer rule that he would like to change, and about the whirlpool and beer after his previous games.
t-online: Mr Bobic, a lot of people say today that their interest in the Bundesliga has sunk in recent months during the Corona crisis. How do you perceive that?
Fredi Bobic (48): I understand it because sometimes I feel it myself. You don’t follow the games with such intensity, concentration or with less passion because the atmosphere in the stadium is lacking.
Are stadiums really empty?
The yearning for packed stadiums is great after the long break and the second half of the season without spectators. Fans want to go back to the arenas to experience the games again.
Fredi Bobic (left) in an interview with t-online reporters Melanie Muschong (right) and Robert Hiersemann. (Source: t-online.de/t-online)
Are there any advantages of empty stadiums, perhaps for professional footballers?
One or the other player had a bad time because the mood that came from the stands was lacking. The game has changed a bit because the pressure from the outside no longer exists. But it has improved the game, from a technical and tactical point of view, because the pressure on the players is less. However, I would like to experience hectic situations on the field again because the atmosphere in the stadium is overflowing.
Take a look at the future: the year 2025. What has professional football learned from the Corona crisis?
The transfer market will normalize a bit, although there will always be a lot of money in football. But I think the clubs will be more cautious. Because now they see what can happen. Players can also be more grateful if they are signed by a club that can pay the salary. I mean the great mass of professional footballers, not the top elite. There will always be a million dollar market for players like Sané, Havertz, Werner. But aside from these industry stars: there will be more unemployed professional footballers in the future.
So are the masses in professional soccer outnumbered?
If the cake grows bigger and bigger, the medium also benefits. And that’s not just the case in the Bundesliga, but also in the second and third divisions. Many professionals play with a salary that is too high for their football quality.
Will the gap between individual leagues widen further in the future?
The longer the pandemic lasts, the more exciting it becomes. Big name clubs could go out of business.
The Eintracht sports director passed through the t-online editorial team and spoke in an interview about his time as a player. (Source: t-online.de/t-online)
To what extent has your job at Eintracht Frankfurt changed as a result of the crisis?
It seems that there are more player exchanges between clubs because the money for the exchange is no longer so easy. These days it reminds me a bit of my school days: when we exchanged pictures of Panini (laughs). For example, I am currently working on about eight personalities and each of them is complicated. It is more exhausting than usual.
The Corona crisis is currently getting much more difficult. But even before that, all was not well in professional football. What would you change about your sport if you could?
I would like to see a regulation regarding professional salaries. Keyword upper salary limit. Because it would simplify a lot, because you would know exactly that a 21-year-old is only allowed to earn up to a certain amount. It would also anchor the player agent commission base in law. But I don’t think that works.
Why not?
Because only the legislature can implement this and an association cannot do it alone. Also, you would weaken compared to other associations.
Fredi Bobic in the studio of the t-online editorial team in Berlin. (Source: t-online / imago images)
Now the new Bundesliga season is just around the corner. What do you expect from the season?
First of all, we can be proud of what we have accomplished with the reboot. We have been celebrated all over the world after they spit on us. We have re-launched our branch of the industry and are trying to be a role model with our concepts so that they can also be adopted for other sports and completely different areas.
What you think? Are we still playing in front of the spectators this season in the Bundesliga?
I hope it is possible and that we lose our fear. But it is not realistic. But I am convinced that we can achieve a utilization of more than 50 percent in the sands. But if we wait for the guaranteed vaccine and everyone is vaccinated, then we will not play in front of the public for the next two or three years.
It could happen that way.
Yes. The season ahead will be by far the most demanding of all. But it will also be interesting and exciting. We will have teams that will fly all over Europe. But are they allowed to go back to work directly at home or do they have to be quarantined? It seems that the whole world is a risk area.
What happens to German clubs if there is still a season of empty ranks?
Then we will have very sick clubs and interest in football will decrease.
Stuttgart offensive trio: The 1995 “Magic Triangle” consisting of Giovane Elber (left), Krassimir Balakow and Fredi Bobic (right). (Source: Pressefoto Baumann / imago images)
How have your Eintracht players lived in recent months?
We had overly brave players discussing everything and again very cautious professionals. There are all kinds of different types in soccer. But in general, professional footballers around the world have been, in my impression, very disciplined in recent months.
New and crude conspiracy theories are constantly emerging that are freely accessible on the Internet. How do you protect your players from this?
Our employees in the social media area at Eintracht Frankfurt talk a lot with our players and also point things out to them. We monitor our professionals to see what they contribute to the world. If you go in a certain direction, there is also a conversation. This is part of our duty of care. Personally, however, I am glad to belong to a different generation. I also recommend that gamers simply turn off their cell phones and use common sense.
Fredi Bobic in 1998 with the VfB Stuttgart jersey against Rapid Vienna. (Source: Sportfoto Rudel / imago images)
As a professional footballer, would you be happy if you played today?
I do not know that. Today’s players can experience happiness differently than we used to. After the game, we sat in the cockpit Jacuzzi and drank a beer or smoked a cigarette. That was our way of handling pressure. Today the boys sit in the cabin, check their cell phones and hardly speak to each other. Writing on the phone seems to be his way of relaxing.
