Learning from Michael Ballack
By: Abby | February 27th, 2008
At least, that’s what Arne Friedrich is theoretically doing.
There has been a lot of talk about leadership at Hertha in the past month or so, with the consensus being that we need more of it. With the team being so young and in many cases new to the Bundesliga, someone needed to step up and take control. The natural focus of this was club captain Arne Friedrich. And he was also the one facing some of the most criticism.
Arne is a nice guy. A talented regular on the German national team. He knows his way around kitchen equipment manufacturing. He’s also fairly modest and quiet and not known for strong leadership ability. But he’s been proving himself lately, with assured performances, and the team has improved with him. After a 3-0 loss at home to Frankfurt, Berlin has taken 7 points out of a possible 9, with wins over Bielefeld and Stuttgart and last Saturday’s draw with Wolfsburg. Not only has he been playing well, he’s been playing the captain as well.
And what brought it on? Thinking of Michael Ballack. Apparently our Kapitän is trying to emulate his Kapitän. After the Frankfurt game, he called a team dinner and they all had a long discussion. Which is another part of the “new” Hertha mentality- spending more time with each other. Teamwork is important, after all.
Improved form has had some in the media discussing UEFA Cup places, but I think that’s getting ahead of ourselves. Better to solidify the position we’re in, ending the season well, and making sure we’re solidly mid-table before thinking about Europe. It can stretch a team too thin if they’re not ready (see Nürnburg for example). Next season, if we end well, we can think about Europe.
Category: Team News
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“Arne is a nice guy. A talented regular on the German national team. He knows his way around kitchen equipment manufacturing. He’s also fairly modest and quiet and not known for strong leadership ability.”
I think the same could have been said about Ballack (probably minus the kitchen equipment bit) prior to his captaincy. So Ballack might be ideal role model for someone like Friedrich.
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[...] Abby discussed the problem of leadership. (Hertha Offside) [...]
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