rost's doctrines from schalke...
For theonecalledh and everyone who's interested, I bring you this article on Hamburg's keeper Frank Rost from the kicker magazine #18 from this year, which was published shortly before the HSV's match against Schalke. I translated this from German, so please excuse the mistakes. If you don't understand something, please ask.
Rost's Doctrines from Schalke
This Friday, HSV's keeper Frank Rost (33) will return to where he had been sorted out before: Gelsenkirchen. From there, he has also taken something with him.
He had to be prepared for this question, so shortly before his return. Still, Frank Rost takes his time to think about it. Is he looking forward to Friday and the match against Schalke with the HSV? "Exceptional" it would be, he said. "I haven't transferred during a season yet. I don't have any particular expectations concerning my person and I don't know if the people there will greet me with open arms."
In Hamburg, his welcome was guaranteed. Rost, not needed by Schalke anymore ("I couldn't have stayed as the #2"), was received with open arms in January, since the persons responsible hadn't only noticed a keeper problem but also a personality problem within their squad. The HSV and Rost - they had looked for and found each other. "I think they wanted me because I can take on functions of a leader," said the keeper. And he took them, quicker than he first thought.
Even during the first days, Rost emphasized that he had to grow into his new role first. "At the beginning, I sometimes got the feeling that we still have to become a team," the native-born Saxonian reports. "It wasn't a matter of effort. Everyone gave his own best. But there was always something missing. It couldn't always have been bad luck during those 17 matchdays. When everyone just does his job and then goes home afterwards, it's simply not enough."
From the first day on, Rost did a little bit more, always left the training grounds near the Arena last, analyzed the loss against Bayern during the winter break preparations together with ex-coach Thomas Doll and sports boss Dietmar Beiersdorfer in the coach room directly after the match. He was willing to become uncomfortable too - right after the 1:1 in Bielefeld, he vociferously dealt with Boubacar Sanogo, acting in matters of integration. After the victory against Dortmund, he invited everyone to celebrate his debut.
"It might sound banal, but it's important to have a glass of beer together sometimes. And it's important to accept people as what they are. It has to be like that when you have many different cultural circles. Everyone has to be willing to give a little of himself. Many things have improved here until now." Rost's words sound plausible. Still, they might surprise those who have always pictured Rost as the "troublemaker" at Schalke. "Those who know me can't have that picture of me," he said. And those who have it can keep it. "You can't do anything against clichés, anyway."
He had to fight against windmills, the 33-year-old said once. In Hamburg, he'll fight relegation. "It just can't be that this squad is so far down in the league. The HSV has to be and stay amongst the first five, that's our claim, and that's why I'm here. There used to be a bond between me and the FC Schalke, and I wouldn't have I wouldn't have transferred to any random club after my time there. With the HSV, I was convinced that it was worth it, even though some people advised me against it."
The persons responsible have noticed a lack of togetherness in the squad that was compiled in an accelerated procedure, which they consider to be the main reason for the downfall. In Rost, they see someone who supports solidarity. Beiersdorfer finds it "remarkable, how quickly he promotes identification."
Watchers of Hamburg's crisis find it remarkable how the ambitious and success-driven keeper dealt with Timothée Atouba; this very left-back, who rarely shies away from dribbling within his own penalty area. After the home victory against Dortmund, the keeper helped with the Cameroonian's resocialization, after he had been eyed suspiciously by the audience after various escapades - he downright pushed him towards the fan block and ordered him to dance.
Rost smirks about this episode. And about Atouba. "With him, you have to be prepared for everything. But there's something about him that makes him better than average. Tim knows that nobody is mad with him, but even he has to give something, to make one pirouette less. Then, he'll get something back. I'm glad that the club reacted with him, that everyone has now forgotten about the past. You rarely see that."
Rost has forgotten about the past - and learned from it. Recently, he said that for a long time, he hasn't been the kind of player anymore who attacks others after a match or rants in front of cameras. "I better go and cool down a bit now. Sometimes, you say or do things because of a premature mood. I wouldn't count that as one of my strengths." His new plan: "Sleep over it. After one night, a lot of things become more objective. And those that don't can be dealt with in a sober way the next morning." That sounds new. Rost smirks at the ensuing question. He was prepared for this one, too, and this time, his answer comes more quickly. "One learns from experience."
(Source: kicker magazine, 26.02.2007, article by Sebastian Wolff)
Rost's Doctrines from Schalke
This Friday, HSV's keeper Frank Rost (33) will return to where he had been sorted out before: Gelsenkirchen. From there, he has also taken something with him.
He had to be prepared for this question, so shortly before his return. Still, Frank Rost takes his time to think about it. Is he looking forward to Friday and the match against Schalke with the HSV? "Exceptional" it would be, he said. "I haven't transferred during a season yet. I don't have any particular expectations concerning my person and I don't know if the people there will greet me with open arms."
In Hamburg, his welcome was guaranteed. Rost, not needed by Schalke anymore ("I couldn't have stayed as the #2"), was received with open arms in January, since the persons responsible hadn't only noticed a keeper problem but also a personality problem within their squad. The HSV and Rost - they had looked for and found each other. "I think they wanted me because I can take on functions of a leader," said the keeper. And he took them, quicker than he first thought.
Even during the first days, Rost emphasized that he had to grow into his new role first. "At the beginning, I sometimes got the feeling that we still have to become a team," the native-born Saxonian reports. "It wasn't a matter of effort. Everyone gave his own best. But there was always something missing. It couldn't always have been bad luck during those 17 matchdays. When everyone just does his job and then goes home afterwards, it's simply not enough."
From the first day on, Rost did a little bit more, always left the training grounds near the Arena last, analyzed the loss against Bayern during the winter break preparations together with ex-coach Thomas Doll and sports boss Dietmar Beiersdorfer in the coach room directly after the match. He was willing to become uncomfortable too - right after the 1:1 in Bielefeld, he vociferously dealt with Boubacar Sanogo, acting in matters of integration. After the victory against Dortmund, he invited everyone to celebrate his debut.
"It might sound banal, but it's important to have a glass of beer together sometimes. And it's important to accept people as what they are. It has to be like that when you have many different cultural circles. Everyone has to be willing to give a little of himself. Many things have improved here until now." Rost's words sound plausible. Still, they might surprise those who have always pictured Rost as the "troublemaker" at Schalke. "Those who know me can't have that picture of me," he said. And those who have it can keep it. "You can't do anything against clichés, anyway."
He had to fight against windmills, the 33-year-old said once. In Hamburg, he'll fight relegation. "It just can't be that this squad is so far down in the league. The HSV has to be and stay amongst the first five, that's our claim, and that's why I'm here. There used to be a bond between me and the FC Schalke, and I wouldn't have I wouldn't have transferred to any random club after my time there. With the HSV, I was convinced that it was worth it, even though some people advised me against it."
The persons responsible have noticed a lack of togetherness in the squad that was compiled in an accelerated procedure, which they consider to be the main reason for the downfall. In Rost, they see someone who supports solidarity. Beiersdorfer finds it "remarkable, how quickly he promotes identification."
Watchers of Hamburg's crisis find it remarkable how the ambitious and success-driven keeper dealt with Timothée Atouba; this very left-back, who rarely shies away from dribbling within his own penalty area. After the home victory against Dortmund, the keeper helped with the Cameroonian's resocialization, after he had been eyed suspiciously by the audience after various escapades - he downright pushed him towards the fan block and ordered him to dance.
Rost smirks about this episode. And about Atouba. "With him, you have to be prepared for everything. But there's something about him that makes him better than average. Tim knows that nobody is mad with him, but even he has to give something, to make one pirouette less. Then, he'll get something back. I'm glad that the club reacted with him, that everyone has now forgotten about the past. You rarely see that."
Rost has forgotten about the past - and learned from it. Recently, he said that for a long time, he hasn't been the kind of player anymore who attacks others after a match or rants in front of cameras. "I better go and cool down a bit now. Sometimes, you say or do things because of a premature mood. I wouldn't count that as one of my strengths." His new plan: "Sleep over it. After one night, a lot of things become more objective. And those that don't can be dealt with in a sober way the next morning." That sounds new. Rost smirks at the ensuing question. He was prepared for this one, too, and this time, his answer comes more quickly. "One learns from experience."
(Source: kicker magazine, 26.02.2007, article by Sebastian Wolff)