Königsdörffer: “I’m someone who looks forward to new challenges”

The 24-year-old new signing discusses his arrival in Mainz, an early reunion with his former club, the Ghana national team and Mainz 05’s goals for the coming season.

In the first friendly in Pfeddersheim, Königsdörffer (second from right) rounded off the scoring with his goal to make it 11-0.

In May, FSV Mainz 05 secured the services of attacking player Ransford Königsdörffer. The Berlin-born forward joined from Hamburger SV and has already settled in very well in Mainz. In the first two friendlies in Pfeddersheim and Eisbachtal, Königsdörffer scored three goals in total, quickly showing his eye for goal. As the 24-year-old explained during a media round on Thursday afternoon, he was very much looking forward to the move to Mainz and the change that came with it after four years in the Hanseatic city. He is also excited by the prospect of being reunited with some familiar faces in the not-too-distant future.

Ransford Königsdörffer spoke about...

...his reasons for joining: “Mainz have been an established Bundesliga club for many years, and the tactical system suits me. On top of that, the talks with Niko Bungert and Urs Fischer were good, the club has a very family-like feel, and I personally wanted a change. That is why I ultimately decided to join this club.”

...his departure from Hamburg: “Of course, it wasn’t easy because I played there for four years. But I’m someone who looks forward to new challenges and doesn’t dwell on the past. Of course, I will miss some people there, but that’s life.”

...his arrival in Mainz: “The team is great and I really get on well with everyone. I already knew Paul Nebel, for example. It’s a lot of fun out on the pitch, especially with the nice weather. Of course, the first few weeks have been very demanding because of pre-season, but that’s part of it.”

...the Bundesliga fixture list: “I was pleased when I saw that we’re away to HSV as early as the second matchday. I’m expecting a chorus of boos,” he laughed. “Nevertheless, it’s obviously nice that I’ll get to see so many familiar faces there again so soon.”

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...his decision to play for Ghana: “I had previously been involved with various German youth national teams from time to time, but I was never a regular part of them. Then the opportunity came up for me to play for Ghana’s senior national team. My father, who is from Ghana, was very supportive of that, and I was also happy about it. Of course, it was disappointing for me not to be called up for the World Cup, but I still tried to follow Ghana’s and Germany’s matches as closely as possible.”

...his special ritual after scoring in competitive matches: “When I was younger, I often ate waffles with Nutella. Of course, over time I had to cut back on that for the sake of my career as a professional athlete. That’s why, at some point, I started treating myself to a waffle with Nutella as a reward after every goal in a competitive match. I’ve been doing that for several years now.”

...his strengths and weaknesses: “I’m quick, dangerous in front of goal, good in one-on-one situations and very direct in the way I play. As an attacking player, though, I can certainly still improve a little when it comes to my defensive work.”

...his goals for the season: “My goal is definitely to play as much as possible, develop as a player and achieve the greatest possible success with the team. For us as a team, staying in the league is the top priority.”

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