TSG 1899 Hoffenheim have been left with plenty to think about after a 1:3 defeat at promoted SC Paderborn, a result that followed a mixed start to the season and another setback in the Europa League. Oliver Baumann, the captain and goalkeeper, said the team must become more aggressive and make sure they improve after the break.
The defeat in Ostwestfalen came after Hoffenheim had shown encouraging signs with a 2:1 win against VfB Stuttgart, only for that to be followed by a 0:2 loss at OFI Kreta in the Europa League and then the poor afternoon in Paderborn. Hoffenheim had plenty of possession, but they could not turn it into enough chances or goals, and that left them with just three points from four matchdays.
Baumann’s message was direct. “Wir müssen danach knallhart Dinge angehen, damit wir uns verbessern,” he said, adding that the side are “zu sorglos unterwegs” and that such an approach may be enough to win a game, but not to win several in a row. He also stressed that Hoffenheim must get to the point where they do not think a good season is enough, because the real standard is to confirm the performance again and again.
Baumann: Hoffenheim need more edge
The captain’s words reflect the mood around the club after a start that has not matched expectations. Hoffenheim had looked as if they might be building momentum after beating Stuttgart, but the defeat on Kreta and the loss at Paderborn have quickly changed the picture.
Wouter Burger was equally blunt, saying: “Wir sind aktuell kein Top-Team.” That is the kind of line that usually lands hard in a dressing room, but it also sums up the present challenge for TSG. The issue is not just the result in Paderborn; it is the sense that the team are still searching for the right level of consistency.
Ilzer and Schicker demand a response
Christian Ilzer said the performance was “an sich ein ordentliches Spiel”, but added that Hoffenheim “make it ourselves difficult” through the goals they concede. That is the key point here. Having the ball is not the problem. What matters is whether Hoffenheim can defend better, play with more control in decisive moments and stop giving away the kind of goals that turn a decent display into a damaging result.
Andreas Schicker backed the broader direction of the club, saying he is “100 Prozent” convinced by the path Hoffenheim are on, but admitted that several things still need to be made clearly better. He also said the season start was not what the club had pictured, that the loss on Kreta had hurt, and that the team now have to get through a difficult phase.
The break has come at the right time
There is at least one obvious benefit for Hoffenheim: the nearly three-week Länderspielpause gives them time to reset. The timing matters, because the team have already had to deal with a league defeat, a European setback and now another loss that underlines how much work is still needed.
Bambasé Conté said Hoffenheim must return after the pause with more aggression in their mentality, describing the need to be “ekliger, dreckiger und schärfer” and to start again with fresh energy. That is the challenge in front of TSG now: not just to recover from one bad result, but to use the pause to become a more reliable side when the season resumes.
Paderborn exposed how far Hoffenheim still have to go, even after the encouraging win over Stuttgart. The next phase will show whether this is just a rough spell at the start of the campaign or a deeper problem that needs fixing quickly.
