There are certainly easier tasks for a trainer, but Gerhard Struber (47) threw himself into the Cologne project – with heart and soul.
Transfer ban, relegation, fear of a total collapse into the depths of German football – things weren’t going well for 1. FC Cologne in May 2024. Even though FC managing director Christian Keller (45) managed to keep the team together as much as possible before the start of the second division, most of the players were completely unsettled after the disappointments of the relegation season.
1. FC Cologne: Coach Struber is not resistant to advice
Struber then came to Cologne with a clear plan: attractive power football. Like many other colleagues in the industry, he didn’t make big noises as a loudspeaker. Struber preferred to work intensively and also looked closely at numerous young players.
In the football business, people often only look at the coach superficially: How does he present himself? How does it come across in the media? How does he dress? But the following questions are much more important for all coaches: How does he work? How does he get a team behind him? How does he make players better? How does he develop the offspring?
Struber’s style was quickly recognizable: full-throttle football, thrilling, spectacular. Unfortunately, the results didn’t match the effort put in on the pitch.
In the 2-0 win on Saturday (October 5, 2024) against SSV Ulm, perhaps Struber’s most remarkable quality came to light: he is not resistant to advice. Quite the opposite: the Austrian is flexible and reacts to eliminate weak points. He is unpretentious and inquisitive. The game against Ulm wasn’t the nicest FC game, but it was successful.
You get the feeling that the coach is open to constantly learning. This is not a given in the industry. Of course, Struber doesn’t succeed in everything and not every plan works immediately. But the way he passes on his insights to players works. He doesn’t overtax his staff and shows tact and patience – especially with young or sensitive professionals.
Struber wakes up numerous FC players and makes some better. All in all, this is thrilling! Linton Maina (25) has been a real asset since the beginning of the season, youngster Julian Pauli (19) is maturing into a stable, calm defender at a record pace, Luca Waldschmidt (28) is gradually regaining his self-confidence.
This is hard work. Struber still has a lot of that ahead of him in the “promotion marathon,” as he himself says. The position of the right-back with the personalities Jan Thielmann (22), Max Finkgräfe (29) or Rasmus Carstensen (23). The coach will solve them in his relaxed, yet challenging way.
