Bundesliga

Patrick Franziska is set to compete in the semi-finals of the German Championship at the Liebherr TTBL Final4 in Frankfurt (30–31 May) with Champions League and Cup winners 1. FC Saarbrücken. In this interview, the FCS captain talks about their semi-final opponents Werder Bremen, the experience in the Saarbrücken camp alongside superstar Fan Zhendong, and a potential “dream final”.

Patrick Franziska, it’s only been a few days since you won the Champions League with 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT – and now the Liebherr TTBL Final4 in Frankfurt is already upon us. What’s the trick to staying motivated for such a highlight following success in Europe’s most important club competition?

As we have a great many competitions throughout the year, including major highlights, I don’t think it’s difficult to get motivated for the Final4 again, especially since we’ve already won two titles. Naturally, this means we’re absolutely raring to go for the Final4, yet we’re also relatively relaxed. No one needs to worry that we’ve lost our motivation.

At the World Team Championships, you and the German team failed to win the hoped-for medal, and you didn’t feature in the Champions League final. How are these experiences affecting your preparations for Frankfurt?

It was, of course, a real shame that we didn’t win a medal at the World Cup. But you have to say that Japan simply have a brilliant team and deserved to be in the final, so our result is actually quite respectable. The fact that I didn’t play in the Champions League final was already more or less decided beforehand, because our squad was simply a bit too strong and we managed to get Fan Zhendong on board at the very last minute last season. That means, with Fan Zhendong, Truls Möregardh, Darko Jorgic and myself, we simply agreed that Darko would play one match and I would play one – and that’s exactly how the line-up worked out best. Because it had all been planned that way, it wasn’t bad news for me.

In the semi-final, your team and you will face Werder Bremen. How do you rate your opponents?

Bremen played outstandingly in the regular season. We also lost to them in Bremen, even with our strongest line-up. That’s why we’re very wary and are really focusing solely on this semi-final right now. We know all the players quite well and are really trying to put together a good line-up so that we can then make it through to the final.

You mentioned it: in the group stage, you lost in Bremen with a full squad. What significance does that defeat still hold for Saarbrücken?

It shows us – even though it was still quite early in the season – that we need to be wide awake in the semi-finals, that we need to be fully prepared, and, above all, that Bremen also know they can beat us. That’s why, as I said, we’ve been warned.

If Saarbrücken had had the choice: would you have preferred a different opponent in the semi-finals?

To be honest, we didn’t give it much thought. Our goal was ‘just’ the Final4, and we would only have had a choice if we’d won the main round. But I generally think that all four teams in the semi-finals really deserve to be there. That’s why anyone playing in the Final4 could ultimately win the title. From that perspective – with all due respect – it’s also a bit less important who we play in the semi-finals.

Your team and you have already won the cup this season ahead of the Champions League. However, since the signing of Olympic champion Fan Zhendong, many observers are expecting Saarbrücken to achieve the ‘treble’. How much pressure is there ahead of what is supposedly the final step towards this historic feat?

If you can sign Fan Zhendong or play alongside him, then on the one hand it has to be part of the club’s ambition to at least try to win every title. On the other hand, we’ve also seen that Fan is only human and can lose matches from time to time, which is why the whole team is still needed. I think we’ve all been doing a brilliant job of that so far. It’s really important that we function as a team – and of course we’re also keen to secure the first treble in Saarbrücken’s club history.

In the current situation, is the value of the championship Saarbrücken is aiming for defined by the title itself, or as a potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to complete the ‘treble’?

Certainly, the chance of the ‘triple’ this year is greater than ever, especially given our squad. But I’ve been in Saarbrücken for several years now, and our goal – and mine – has always been to win every title, or at least to be in contention for every title. That won’t change in the coming years either. We’re therefore focusing solely on the Final4 and will see what comes of it in the end.

You’ve spent a lot of time with Fan Zhendong over the past few months. Can you describe what success in the Saarbrücken jersey means to a three-time Olympic champion and multiple world champion like him?

You can clearly see how much fun he’s having in Germany and with his new role, but also what effect it’s having on him. As I’ve already said, he’s only human and wants to gain new experiences. We saw this most recently after the Champions League, where, despite suffering two defeats himself, he was all the more delighted to win this title, which was also very, very important to him. That’s why I’m also sure he’ll be raring to go again in Frankfurt.

Fan Zhendong is leaving Saarbrücken after the Final4 to join your long-standing rivals Borussia Düsseldorf. How are you, as a team and personally, dealing with the approaching moment of his departure?

Personally, I’m not worrying about Fan going to Düsseldorf ahead of the Final4. He’s still playing for us, and we’re all very happy about that. We’ll see what happens after that, but for now we’re focusing on Frankfurt.

Experts are predicting a final in Frankfurt between Düsseldorf and your team. Would such a clash be more heated than previous encounters, which have been characterised by the general rivalry between the two teams, due to Fan’s involvement?

If it were to come down to such a final, I don’t think it would be any more heated than usual. We’re long-standing rivals; we’ve played against each other in many finals before, but even so, as I just said, we’re all still playing for the club we represent. That alone would certainly make it a top-class and very exciting match. The spectators can certainly look forward to that.

As captain of FCS, do you see – regardless of the outcome of the Final4 and beyond Centre Court – a kind of ‘legacy’ from this winding-up, intense year with China’s superstar?

Saarbrücken has, after all, already shown in recent years that it’s constantly moving forward. The season with Fan Zhendong was a huge undertaking, managing it all with the whole club and all the helpers, because there was already so much demand. But we simply showed that it can work, that it can work really well, even given the external circumstances. So you could say it was very intense, but also incredibly enjoyable. Now we have one more weekend together ahead of us, and we want to make the most of it.

Back to the Final4: How do you view the reform of the format on the one hand, and the hopes for a more balanced schedule for the players on the other?

I think that was a very good decision. But I also understand clubs that, without the previous play-offs, complain about having one or two fewer home games. On the other hand, I always think events like the new Final4 and the Champions League final, spread over two days, are absolutely brilliant. The atmosphere is always fantastic, the arenas are packed. I think the spectators really, really enjoy it, and so do the players – just like in the cup – which is why I’m a big fan of these events. Of course, it’s also a bit more convenient for us players, as we have fewer fixtures in our already packed schedules. This creates a win-win situation for the spectators – many of whom are brought along by the clubs – and for us players. For all these reasons, I consider the reform to be a very, very good decision.

Thank you very much for talking to us, Patrick Franziska.

Florian Manzke