Roger Schmidt: "It is an honor to be able to coach a club like Benfica"

INTERVIEW

Roger Schmidt gave an extensive interview to the very prestigious German magazine "Kicker", where he addressed several issues of current events in the Benfica team. "It is an honor to be able to coach a club like Benfica", he highlights.

RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FANS

"I feel very welcome, even before we have started playing. I noticed that Portuguese culture adapts well to me. You realize the importance of football and the passion they feel for this sport, especially Benfica, in this city. I felt that right from the start, there was a positive approach to us [the coaching staff] and me. We are the newcomers. Then, we just had to concentrate on the job and convince the fans. I think the team is responding. What happens on the pitch is the coach's evaluation. We still tried to change things, to focus on other things in terms of football, in what Benfica is, attacking football, playing forward. It is always positive to play well, win games, and score goals. This boosts confidence and helps us because they recognize our work, but, like the standings, this is a momentary thing. It has to be constantly reiterated and is extremely important."

PERSONALITY

"I'm still the same. Sometimes what gets out doesn't correspond to reality. Those who work with me closely, in the clubs, know that I haven't changed, neither in the way, I deal with people, nor as a coach. Of course, I'm developing. I feel that I am a better coach today than I was at [PSV] Eindhoven, that I was a better coach there than in China, and I was better there than at Leverkusen. With each job, you gain experience. The coaching job is so complex that you end up having a wider range of options when it comes to leading people, teams, and making decisions because you have more experience."

GAME MODEL

"Of course, when you change clubs and players, the game changes. I've had teams that had a lot of possession. We want that, it's the most important thing in football because it allows you to score goals, but there are different types of possession. In recent years I have placed a lot of value on controlling the game, and the pace of the game, and that works best when we have the ball. I have always coached teams in international competitions, where you play every three days. You have to find a way to play that is to some extent economical, where you can play reliably every three days, but which also allows for some regeneration. This has to be adapted to the club, the culture, the players."

LEADERSHIP

" I think that over the years and with stints at clubs you should get better. I should improve. Everyone should. All the coaches, not only me. It's hard to talk about myself, I don't want to evaluate myself. I like to look at a pitch and see a team playing good football, with a clear plan, and doing everything to win the match. When I see that, I am pleased. That's what happens right now. I see him every three days. That makes me happy as a coach." 

BENFICA'S MAGNITUDE

"Of course, Benfica, because of its history, its value in Portugal, its entire past, is a huge club, and you can feel in the city the incredible love that people have for the Club. You feel it every day. You don't have to be here long to feel it, you just have to spend the night in a hotel and at breakfast the next day you immediately realize what is important in this city. It's football and Benfica. This makes me very happy to be training here." 

GOALS

"We want to be champions. It was already beautiful. I've been told many times that Benfica hasn't been champion for three years, and it's something we all want. We want to give that joy to the fans, we want them to be proud of us. We want to play good football, but also win titles. For that we give everything, and those are our goals." 

GROUP H

"In football, nothing is insurmountable. First of all, I think it's good because I've never played against any of these teams. With Eindhoven we played Maccabi Tel Aviv. It's a real Champions League group. This is what you can expect when you play this competition. We know it's important for the Club, even for financial reasons, but of course the Champions League is the best club competition in the world. Playing here is the most beautiful thing in football and I am very happy to be able to be in this competition again. Of course, it's a group with PSG and Juventus is not easy, but it's not impossible. We are not satisfied with third place. We want to advance to the knockout stage."

STRATEGY

"Benfica is a selling club. It always has been and should continue to be, that's how it works. What Benfica does is nurture players at the young age groups, launch them when they are ready, and sell them. It is exciting, I identify myself with this philosophy. In Eindhoven, it was similar. There are clubs that don't have rich owners injecting money and have to finance themselves. It's not a contradiction. We are trying to put together the best squad to be competitive, also considering that we want to play for the title"

STRUCTURE

"You can feel that everywhere. There is a lot of support from those who work at the club, and the conditions here in Seixal are extraordinary. We are on the pitch practically looking at the river. From time to time, I have to pinch myself."

WELCOME

"Right from the start there was a lot of positive energy and openness from Benfica, from all the staff, we have had a lot of support. It is impossible to be more well-received than we were. And it is impossible to have more collaboration in the work"