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„A season without a title is a lost season”
Exclusive-interview with Uwe Schwenker, Manager of THW Kiel
The triple-winner THW Kiel starts the new season officially on Tuesday – with the German Super Cup against the cup runner-up Rhein Neckar Löwen Mannheim. 11.000 tickets have been sold for this match in Munich – and this is the first of five chances for Kiel to win a title this season. Before this match Kiel-manager Uwe Schwenker says in an exclusive interview with ehfcl.com that his team is aiming to win every match – with priority set on the Bundesliga and Champions League.
ehfcl.com: Mr. Schwenker, tomorrow your team plays in the Super Cup. How important is this match for Kiel?
Schwenker: It will be a brilliant atmosphere with a near to sell-out hall. We have the ambition to show our strength. Both teams play with a lot of interesting, strong new players, so the spectators will see a great match, I hope. Naturally our ambition is to win the title, but we would much rather win the league match against Mannheim, these points are important for us.
ehfcl.com: In this season is it possible for Kiel to win five titles – Champions League, Bundesliga, German Cup, Super Cup and European Champions Trophy. What is the key competition for THW?
Schwenker: We want to win every match in every competition. The most important competitions are the Champions League with matches against the best clubs of the world and – naturally – the Bundesliga with very interesting matches against strong opponents.
ehfcl.com: In Germany all coaches of the 18 Bundesliga-teams said, THW Kiel is the main favourite for the title. Does this opinion make you feel proud, or does it pressurise THW?
Schwenker: We have withheld pressure for many years, so it is nothing new for us. The only pressure we have is the pressure that we put on ourselves. We are aiming to get the title in Germany and in Europe again, but we have to show respect to all opponents, because when you lose the respect, you have a problem. All the other clubs in the Bundesliga and Champions League work hard, they are all improving for next season. But I think we also have a good team for both competitions. If all the others say we are the favourite, we can live with this.
ehfcl.com: Last season Kiel won the CL title for the first time after several attempts. How big was the relief after lifting the big Cup?
Schwenker: It was a great pleasure, after we had tried so hard in the years before and did not get to take the trophy home. But the most impressive thing was that we won the title, although four key players were injured, but the “few players” we did have played great matches, winning the historic triple including the CL title.
ehfcl.com: Some say, after signing players like Jicha and Lund and the fact that all the injured players will make a comeback now, Kiel will be unbeatable on national territory next season. Is this true?
Schwenker: No, no, no. No team is unbeatable; it will be very hard as our national opponents also signed very strong layers. And: our injured players might be back in training again, but they have not reached 100 percent yet – but our preparation for the season with a lot of matches and tournaments was good, so we are optimistic.
ehfcl.com: So your objective is titles, titles, titles….
Schwenker: No, the only real objective is – in a sporting and financial meaning – to qualify for the Champions League every year. In Germany and in the CL it will be hard to win the title again, as teams like Hamburg, Mannheim, Flensburg and Lemgo are strong. And in the Champions League we have to play against Montpellier in the first group phase – an opponent that also stands for great handball. At the end of the season I hope that we are able to win a title – as a season without a title for Kiel is a lost season.
ehfcl.com: What teams are your favourites in the CL?
Schwenker: It’s always the same “old suspects” like the teams from Germany and Spain, especially Ciudad Real. Then you have to see how Barcelona develops. And there are a lot of experienced teams, like for example Veszprem, that play every year on a top level in the CL, so that some surprises are possible.
ehfcl.com: THW Kiel is a member of the G15-group of handball clubs. This group works especially for a lesser “burden” for the players. Are there some current results?
Schwenker: We have a good dialogue with the EHF, but we are cautious in communicating the results to the public at this point – the EHF is also aware that the players have a lot of matches - we hope that we will achieve some results to help the players.
TEXT: Björn Pazen
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