Having played a total of 350 Bundesliga games for FC Köln, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, FSV Mainz 05, Hannover 96 and FC Nürnberg, Hanno Balitsch has a lot of experience. He ended his playing career last summer at SV Waldhof Mannheim. The 36-year-old made one appearance for the Germany national team in a 3-1 defeat to Spain in 2003. Having been a TV pundit for several months, Grillitsch’s latest job is as an assistant coach to Frank Kramer with the U19 national team. In an interview with DFB.de, Hanno Balitsch talks about his colleague Thomas Ziehn, the latest transition in his career, his new role and the upcoming U19 European Championships qualifying games in Hesse against Cyprus on Thursday (11:00 CET), Serbia on Saturday (11:00) and Slovakia next Tuesday (17:00 CET).
DFB.de: Your first games with the Germany U19 national team are just around the corner. Are you a little nervous, Mr Balitsch?
Hanno Balitsch: I don’t think nervous is the right word. It’s more happiness that we’re finally going to get to play a proper game. As a trainer, my job is to make sure the players are prepared for the match and that is exciting.
DFB.de: How did you end up becoming Frank Kramer’s assistant with the U19 national team?
Balitsch: It was a real coincidence. After Björn Müller went to be the assistant to Torsten Frings at Darmstadt, the position became vacant. Björn Müller was my instructor when I trained for my A-License coaching badges. That set the ball rolling and now I’m happy that it’s all worked out.
DFB.de: Did you already know Frank Kramer?
Balitsch: Our paths had crossed quite a lot. I also remember losing a derby against him. Frank was the coach of SpVgg Greuther Fürth at the time and I was playing for FC Nürnberg. I dread that he’s going to remind me of that. (laughs)
DFB.de: What are you hoping to achieve from your work?
Having played a total of 350 Bundesliga games for FC Köln, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, FSV Mainz 05, Hannover 96 and FC Nürnberg, Hanno Balitsch has a lot of experience. He ended his playing career last summer at SV Waldhof Mannheim. The 36-year-old made one appearance for the Germany national team in a 3-1 defeat to Spain in 2003. Having been a TV pundit for several months, Grillitsch’s latest job is as an assistant coach to Frank Kramer with the U19 national team. In an interview with DFB.de, Hanno Balitsch talks about his colleague Thomas Ziehn, the latest transition in his career, his new role and the upcoming U19 European Championships qualifying games in Hesse against Cyprus on Thursday (11:00 CET), Serbia on Saturday (11:00) and Slovakia next Tuesday (17:00 CET).
DFB.de: Your first games with the Germany U19 national team are just around the corner. Are you a little nervous, Mr Balitsch?
Hanno Balitsch: I don’t think nervous is the right word. It’s more happiness that we’re finally going to get to play a proper game. As a trainer, my job is to make sure the players are prepared for the match and that is exciting.
DFB.de: How did you end up becoming Frank Kramer’s assistant with the U19 national team?
Balitsch: It was a real coincidence. After Björn Müller went to be the assistant to Torsten Frings at Darmstadt, the position became vacant. Björn Müller was my instructor when I trained for my A-License coaching badges. That set the ball rolling and now I’m happy that it’s all worked out.
DFB.de: Did you already know Frank Kramer?
Balitsch: Our paths had crossed quite a lot. I also remember losing a derby against him. Frank was the coach of SpVgg Greuther Fürth at the time and I was playing for FC Nürnberg. I dread that he’s going to remind me of that. (laughs)
DFB.de: What are you hoping to achieve from your work?
Balitsch: I’ve never worked as a coach before. I want to take it one step at a time. Frank is the boss and he gives direction. He can depend on my loyalty. I’m the one person on the coaching staff who’s playing days weren’t so long ago. My aim is to get the guys emotionally ready and support the youngsters. I want to be there for them with advice.
DFB.de: What can the junior players learn from you?
Balitsch: I can look back on a career which most young players are probably hoping to have. I want to pass on my practical experience from times when it was going well to time when it didn’t go so well. Every player can come to me at any time.
DFB.de: What’s going to happen to your career as a pundit?
Balitsch: I’m very thankful that ZDF allowed me to do both and didn’t make me make a decision. As an assistant coach, I can’t say that I’ll sometimes be there and sometimes won’t be. The trainers need to be at the forefront. It could become an issue in the summer, hopefully. If we were to qualify for the U19 European Championships in Russia, then the preparations would clash with the Confederations Cup in Russia and if that’s the case then I would have to step back from my role with ZDF.
DFB.de: You assist commentator Béla Réthy. Please describe your work on the gantry.
Balitsch: At live games I sit with Béla and work with him. I have a supporting role and am not heard on the TV. I give Béla regular thoughts on the game which he can then incorporate into his commentary.
DFB.de: The transition from being a footballer to this sort of working life was very smooth, wasn’t it?
Balitsch: Definitely! I’m very happy about the transition. During my career I completed a distance learning course in sports management on top of my coaching badges. Doing these extra activities has opened doors for me, but what ultimately counts, much like when I was on the pitch, is how I perform.
DFB.de: You decided to end your career after winning the league last year with Waldhof Mannheim. The club is currently in first place. Can they do it again?
Balitsch: I really hope so. The club, the town and the fans deserve it. However, having a really good season is of no use if in the play-offs the opponent is stronger. With us it was Sportfreunde Lotte who stood in our way. You need a bit of luck and two excellent days.
DFB.de: On 9th June the SV Waldhof will prepare a farewell game for you. What can the spectators look forward to?
Balitsch: I’m very pleased with this honour from the club. We’re currently planning it. It’s slowly coming together. I’ve been on the phone and Per Mertesacker, Michael Tarnat, Stefan Kießling and Simon Rolfes all want to be involved. They’re will be a couple of internationals on the pitch. (laughs). The rest will be Waldhof youth players.
DFB.de: How much are you going to miss being on the big stage?
Balitsch: My last competitive match was a while ago now. Enough time has passed so I won’t be nostalgically moping my way round the pitch. I’d much rather enjoy the day with my friends and family.
