Zieler: We should have tried to regroup straight after going behind. It happens very often that you concede two goals in quick succession. Those are periods in a game when you need to remain focused and not allow anything. In any case, we just need to keep looking forwards.
Question: Do you think you're lodged in a relegation battle?
Zieler: We're only five games into the season. We can talk about a bad start but it's a bit premature to even mention the word 'relegation' after five matchdays. But we do need points. We can only take it one step at a time, and the first step is to get a win against Stuttgart. After that, we'll keep going.
After their fourth loss in five games and with just one point on the board, alarm bells are starting to ring at Hannover 96. With an important game on Wednesday evening against VfB Stuttgart, who are yet to pick up a single point, Hannover's World Cup-winning goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler spoke frankly about their form after Sunday's 2-0 loss to FC Augsburg.
Question: Mr Zieler, what do you make of the 2-0 defeat at FC Augsburg?
Ron-Robert Zieler: It's incredibly annoying for me that we conceded the second goal so quickly after the first. It obviously doesn't make our job any easier when we're playing away in Augsburg. Anyone can make a mistake, but we need to ensure that we keep them to a minimum. That's expected from every one of us.
Question: That means?
Zieler: I should say first of all that everyone showed the will and the desire to take something from the game. The team can't be criticised for that. There's no point turning on one another or writing ourselves off at this stage. We still have enough games, but it's also clear that we need to slowly pull ourselves together and turn things around as quickly as possible.
Question: You have a chance to do just that on Wednesday against VfB Stuttgart.
Zieler: Both sides have obviously made fairly sluggish starts; it's a huge game at this stage of the season. We're playing at home so we naturally expect to finally take the three points.
Question: What lessons are you taking from the Augsburg match?
Zieler: We should have tried to regroup straight after going behind. It happens very often that you concede two goals in quick succession. Those are periods in a game when you need to remain focused and not allow anything. In any case, we just need to keep looking forwards.
Question: Do you think you're lodged in a relegation battle?
Zieler: We're only five games into the season. We can talk about a bad start but it's a bit premature to even mention the word 'relegation' after five matchdays. But we do need points. We can only take it one step at a time, and the first step is to get a win against Stuttgart. After that, we'll keep going.
