Please share with us, what makes you hopeful that our new coach Michael Skibbe is the right man for us? I am quite optimistic, for several reasons! Maybe we can collect some sources of hope and send them as a list with the next English Newsletter. Why will we play better with him?
I think, first and most important expertise is how he can work with young players. Developing their skills and self-confidence. This could fit very well to our young players like Fenin, Ümit and Caio. He has shown that in Leverkusen, where he worked with Players like Berbatov, Rolfes, Barnetta and Kießling, which were no-names before.
I totally agree.... Skibbe has had a fortune of bad luck with teams and making a success... I believe that the previous teams that he was the trainer for... really did not give him much of chance to shine... He has always been in the spotlight with major teams and therefore, many mistakes were made under pressure... I believe Frankfurt will give him more of chance than he has ever received from other teams... He has lots of work to do in a short period of time with these young players... Frankfurt should be very optimistic during the first half of the season and the team will grow and learn from this trainer and nothing will be taught overnight...
I found this on Bundesliga.de and thought people could read this to get an idea about Skibbe.
Eintracht Frankfurt have found a new coach. Michael Skibbe will take over at the end of the month on a two-year contract through to June 30th 2011. bundesliga.de takes a look at the new man.
Eintracht Frankfurt have found a new coach. Michael Skibbe will take over at the end of the month on a two-year contract through to June 30th 2011. bundesliga.de takes a look at the new man.
Skibbe succeeds Friedhelm Funkel, who stepped down after five years in charge at Frankfurt, and is looking to get his own career back on track having been dismissed twice within the past twelve months.
"I'm sometimes labelled as an unsuccessful coach. That's very unfair", the 43-year-old says: "At Dortmund, with Germany and at Leverkusen too I was for the most part successful. I've made my mark over the past ten years and it's certainly no comedown for me to join Frankfurt."
From BVB to the DFB
Skibbe's first head coaching job was at Borussia Dortmund, where he took charge in 1998, leading the club to fourth place in his first season. The following year, he parted ways with the club after a 1-0 home defeat to Kaiserslautern on matchday 18.
Between 2000 and 2004, he coached the German national team alongside Rudi Völler. The duo led Germany to the 2002 World Cup final, but resigned together two years later when the team were eliminated at the group stage of EURO 2004 in Portugal.
Premature departure from Istanbul
In October 2005 Skibbe returned to the Bundesliga, this time with Bayer Leverkusen. In each of his first two seasons there he took them to fifth place in the league and into Europe. In 2007-08, a last-day home loss to Werder Bremen in a game they went into in fourth place meant that they missed out on the UEFA Cup. At the end of the season, Bayer and Skibbe went their separate ways.
The next staging post in the former Schalke 04 striker's career was Istanbul, where he signed on with Galatasaray. It was destined to be a short-lived tenure however, a 5-2 home league defeat against bottom club Kocaelispor precipitating Skibbe's departure in February.
Fresh start in Frankfurt
Now he is back in the German top flight again and looking to improve on the 13th place Frankfurt achieved in the season just ended.
Goalkeeper Ralf Fährmann from Schalke 04 and defender Maik Franz from relegated Karlsruher SC have already been brought in to stiffen the ranks at the back and Skibbe has already issued a mission statement: "I want to see good, attractive, exciting football and take the next step into a good Bundesliga future with Eintracht. We want to fan the flame of enthusiasm in our own stadium."
As to the seemingly never-ending local subject of Caio, the new coach says of the Brazilian midfielder, "Caio is a very good footballer. He's got great potential and it will be my job to get the best out of him."
Having gone into last season full of hope, Eintracht Frankfurt finished the campaign in a disappointing 13th place.
Coach Friedhelm Funkel stepped down after five years in the job and Michael Skibbe was subsequently appointed to succeed him.
With stints at Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen, the German national side and, most recently, Galatasaray Istanbul under his belt, Skibbe takes on the job at Frankfurt with a clear vision of the way ahead - as he laid out for bundesliga.de in interview.
bundesliga.de: Michael Skibbe, welcome back to the Bundesliga. Did you miss German football while you were away?
Michael Skibbe: I didn't really have to miss it: three Bundesliga games are shown live every week in Turkey. So I could stay in constant touch with events in Germany, and I'm up to date on pretty much every squad in the Bundesliga.
bundesliga.de: You signed a two-year deal at Eintracht Frankfurt, and you were their number one choice. When did Eintracht approach you and how long did you need to reflect on their offer?
Skibbe: I didn't have to think about it for long after Heribert Bruchhagen got in touch with me. Eintracht Frankfurt are one of the great traditional Bundesliga clubs and the heart and soul of the region. The club is established in the top flight, in both sporting and economic terms, and I've known Heribert Bruchhagen for 20 years now. Coaching this side is a great job, but a challenge as well.
bundesliga.de: What particularly attracts you about the work at Eintracht Frankfurt?
Skibbe: Alongside the strong regional identity I mentioned, Eintracht also have a fantastic stadium, a huge potential fan base and a squad capable of achieving a good bit more than they did last season. A lot will depend on us steering clear of serious injuries of course.
bundesliga.de:Eintracht are your third Bundesliga club. what special qualities do they embody to your mind?
Skibbe: Eintracht are managed in a calm, reflective manner at board level. In Bernd Hölzenbein and Charly Körbel they have genuinely expert advisors and in contrast to many other clubs are in a healthy financial state and free of debt. The club have a large, long-standing base of loyal fans, for whom no journey is too far to cheer on their side.
bundesliga.de: When you took on the job you talked about stoking up "enthusiasm and fire". How exactly do you aim to turn up the heat at Eintracht?
Skibbe: I'd like to see us playing more attractive, aggressive, attacking football, above all in our home games. The fans have to get the sense that we're out to win on home territory. I want them to be looking forward on Saturday morning to heading for the stadium to watch Eintracht.
bundesliga.de:The club wants to play more attractive football. That was what the fans of your three previous employers got for the most part. Is Caio the key figure for a Frankfurt side playing in that fashion?
Skibbe: Caio's a really good footballer, with a lot of potential. Like a lot of South American players, he misses his homeland. While other players can make a short trip home on a training-free day, it's not so easy for a South American faced with a flight of ten hours or more. Our task will be to get the best out of Caio. I'm confident I can do that, as I've worked together with a few Brazilians before.
bundesliga.de: After finishing 14th two years running, Eintracht climbed to ninth in 2007-08. Last season they were back down to 13th. Is a top-ten finish a realistic target for the coming campaign?
Skibbe: We'll certainly be setting ourselves a target, but only once I've got to know the squad better after pre-season training and heard from the players themselves what they believe they're capable of. What is for certain is that last season's 33-point total was too little.
bundesliga.de:Eintracht have already signed two promising players in defender Maik Franz from Karlsruhe and keeper Ralf Fährmann from Schalke 04. Which role do those two play in your plans?
Skibbe: Maik Franz is a tried-and-tested defender, strong in the air and in the tackle. He'll strengthen our central defence without a doubt and is also capable of spurring on his team-mates. Ralf Fährmann's coming to Frankfurt as a very talented keeper. But the same rule applies to him as everybody else - to take up the gauntlet and earn his place in the side. No-one's a guaranteed starter.
bundesliga.de:Will you be looking to further strengthen the squad and if so, in which positions?
Skibbe: I'm contemplating another two or three new players. With Michael Fink and Junichi Inamoto gone, we have a hole in the defensive midfield area. I'd also like to have an alternative up front, especially bearing in mind the serious injury to Ioannis Amanatidis last season.
Yours, Alex
He has shown that in Leverkusen, where he worked with Players like Berbatov, Rolfes, Barnetta and Kießling, which were no-names before.
Eintracht Frankfurt have found a new coach. Michael Skibbe will take over at the end of the month on a two-year contract through to June 30th 2011. bundesliga.de takes a look at the new man.
Eintracht Frankfurt have found a new coach. Michael Skibbe will take over at the end of the month on a two-year contract through to June 30th 2011. bundesliga.de takes a look at the new man.
Skibbe succeeds Friedhelm Funkel, who stepped down after five years in charge at Frankfurt, and is looking to get his own career back on track having been dismissed twice within the past twelve months.
"I'm sometimes labelled as an unsuccessful coach. That's very unfair", the 43-year-old says: "At Dortmund, with Germany and at Leverkusen too I was for the most part successful. I've made my mark over the past ten years and it's certainly no comedown for me to join Frankfurt."
From BVB to the DFB
Skibbe's first head coaching job was at Borussia Dortmund, where he took charge in 1998, leading the club to fourth place in his first season. The following year, he parted ways with the club after a 1-0 home defeat to Kaiserslautern on matchday 18.
Between 2000 and 2004, he coached the German national team alongside Rudi Völler. The duo led Germany to the 2002 World Cup final, but resigned together two years later when the team were eliminated at the group stage of EURO 2004 in Portugal.
Premature departure from Istanbul
In October 2005 Skibbe returned to the Bundesliga, this time with Bayer Leverkusen. In each of his first two seasons there he took them to fifth place in the league and into Europe. In 2007-08, a last-day home loss to Werder Bremen in a game they went into in fourth place meant that they missed out on the UEFA Cup. At the end of the season, Bayer and Skibbe went their separate ways.
The next staging post in the former Schalke 04 striker's career was Istanbul, where he signed on with Galatasaray. It was destined to be a short-lived tenure however, a 5-2 home league defeat against bottom club Kocaelispor precipitating Skibbe's departure in February.
Fresh start in Frankfurt
Now he is back in the German top flight again and looking to improve on the 13th place Frankfurt achieved in the season just ended.
Goalkeeper Ralf Fährmann from Schalke 04 and defender Maik Franz from relegated Karlsruher SC have already been brought in to stiffen the ranks at the back and Skibbe has already issued a mission statement: "I want to see good, attractive, exciting football and take the next step into a good Bundesliga future with Eintracht. We want to fan the flame of enthusiasm in our own stadium."
As to the seemingly never-ending local subject of Caio, the new coach says of the Brazilian midfielder, "Caio is a very good footballer. He's got great potential and it will be my job to get the best out of him."
Having gone into last season full of hope, Eintracht Frankfurt finished the campaign in a disappointing 13th place.
Coach Friedhelm Funkel stepped down after five years in the job and Michael Skibbe was subsequently appointed to succeed him.
With stints at Borussia Dortmund, Bayer Leverkusen, the German national side and, most recently, Galatasaray Istanbul under his belt, Skibbe takes on the job at Frankfurt with a clear vision of the way ahead - as he laid out for bundesliga.de in interview.
bundesliga.de: Michael Skibbe, welcome back to the Bundesliga. Did you miss German football while you were away?
Michael Skibbe: I didn't really have to miss it: three Bundesliga games are shown live every week in Turkey. So I could stay in constant touch with events in Germany, and I'm up to date on pretty much every squad in the Bundesliga.
bundesliga.de: You signed a two-year deal at Eintracht Frankfurt, and you were their number one choice. When did Eintracht approach you and how long did you need to reflect on their offer?
Skibbe: I didn't have to think about it for long after Heribert Bruchhagen got in touch with me. Eintracht Frankfurt are one of the great traditional Bundesliga clubs and the heart and soul of the region. The club is established in the top flight, in both sporting and economic terms, and I've known Heribert Bruchhagen for 20 years now. Coaching this side is a great job, but a challenge as well.
bundesliga.de: What particularly attracts you about the work at Eintracht Frankfurt?
Skibbe: Alongside the strong regional identity I mentioned, Eintracht also have a fantastic stadium, a huge potential fan base and a squad capable of achieving a good bit more than they did last season. A lot will depend on us steering clear of serious injuries of course.
bundesliga.de:Eintracht are your third Bundesliga club. what special qualities do they embody to your mind?
Skibbe: Eintracht are managed in a calm, reflective manner at board level. In Bernd Hölzenbein and Charly Körbel they have genuinely expert advisors and in contrast to many other clubs are in a healthy financial state and free of debt. The club have a large, long-standing base of loyal fans, for whom no journey is too far to cheer on their side.
bundesliga.de: When you took on the job you talked about stoking up "enthusiasm and fire". How exactly do you aim to turn up the heat at Eintracht?
Skibbe: I'd like to see us playing more attractive, aggressive, attacking football, above all in our home games. The fans have to get the sense that we're out to win on home territory. I want them to be looking forward on Saturday morning to heading for the stadium to watch Eintracht.
bundesliga.de:The club wants to play more attractive football. That was what the fans of your three previous employers got for the most part. Is Caio the key figure for a Frankfurt side playing in that fashion?
Skibbe: Caio's a really good footballer, with a lot of potential. Like a lot of South American players, he misses his homeland. While other players can make a short trip home on a training-free day, it's not so easy for a South American faced with a flight of ten hours or more. Our task will be to get the best out of Caio. I'm confident I can do that, as I've worked together with a few Brazilians before.
bundesliga.de: After finishing 14th two years running, Eintracht climbed to ninth in 2007-08. Last season they were back down to 13th. Is a top-ten finish a realistic target for the coming campaign?
Skibbe: We'll certainly be setting ourselves a target, but only once I've got to know the squad better after pre-season training and heard from the players themselves what they believe they're capable of. What is for certain is that last season's 33-point total was too little.
bundesliga.de:Eintracht have already signed two promising players in defender Maik Franz from Karlsruhe and keeper Ralf Fährmann from Schalke 04. Which role do those two play in your plans?
Skibbe: Maik Franz is a tried-and-tested defender, strong in the air and in the tackle. He'll strengthen our central defence without a doubt and is also capable of spurring on his team-mates. Ralf Fährmann's coming to Frankfurt as a very talented keeper. But the same rule applies to him as everybody else - to take up the gauntlet and earn his place in the side. No-one's a guaranteed starter.
bundesliga.de:Will you be looking to further strengthen the squad and if so, in which positions?
Skibbe: I'm contemplating another two or three new players. With Michael Fink and Junichi Inamoto gone, we have a hole in the defensive midfield area. I'd also like to have an alternative up front, especially bearing in mind the serious injury to Ioannis Amanatidis last season.