Zentner: “It’s difficult to explain”

1. FSV Mainz 05 suffered a tough afternoon in Frankfurt on Saturday. With little going forward in the first half and a 2-0 lead for Eintracht, the Zerofivers built themselves back up briefly after the break. However, Randal Kolo Muani’s goal on the hour mark settled the game in favour of the home side.

Post-match reaction from Deutsche Bank Park

Martin Schmidt: “We have to take this heavy defeat as it is. We hoped there would be a reaction following that first half, especially in the way we played, but unfortunately it carried on in a similar vein and that meant we had nothing to take from today. We had a lot of problems in the half-spaces and deserved to go two goals down, even though the penalty decision was harsh but fair. We hoped for that reaction, but we didn’t get stuck into tackles and didn’t win the ball back enough to create anything going forward. That gave us the scoreline.”

Robin Zentner: “I was surprised at how we performed as a team, because the way we played, we had no chance to take anything from as good a side as them. We needed to take at least a point from them to stay ahead of them in the table, so to be so devoid of chances and having a bit of a lack of intensity is difficult to explain. I never feel that in this team – you always feel like we’re up for it and want to win. We even had a lot of energy before the game, but just didn’t look fresh and weren’t hungry.”

Stefan Bell: “It was just poor from us in general, that’s frustrating. Right now we’re not finding our stability when we sit deep, but we’re also not pressing high to win the ball back. It’s a period where we’re a distance away from being good. We’re trying hard, but things just aren’t working well. We haven’t been great for a while and we need to come out of this rut, so that we don’t end this good season in a disappointing way.”

Andreas Hanche-Olsen: “It just wasn’t good enough and was a very poor reaction to the recent defeats. We were on the back foot from the first minute to the final whistle. We shouldn’t be playing like that, it isn’t our identity. The intensity in the last three games hasn’t been the same as it was in the previous games, and we need to change that in the final two matches. There are six points up for grabs and we need to focus on them.”