The second half of the season couldn’t have begun much better for relegation threatened Hansa Rostock and their striker Marcel Ziemer in the 3. Liga. The 29-year-old’s eleventh goal of the season didn’t just help second bottom Rostock to a 2-1 win against promotion hopefuls SV Wehen Wiesbaden, but he was also able to enjoy a day off with his family in Worms.
“If we show our quality on the pitch then we can beat anyone in the league,” said the former Germany youth international, who has consolidated his position in second place of the all-time top goalscorers list for the 3. Liga with 60 goals in 168 appearances behind Chemnitzer’s Anton Fink (79 goals in 165 games). In the DFB.de interview of the week, Marcel Ziemer spoke to Ralf Debat about the large amounts of new team mates at FC Hansa, the upcoming games against their three closest rivals in the relegation battle and his “brother.”
DFB.de: How much is the successful start to the second half of the season in Wiesbaden a weight off your shoulders Mr. Ziemer?
Marcel Ziemer: There’s no question that it was important for us to have a good start. No one was expecting us to get three points against SV Wehen Wiesbaden but I know the 3. Liga and I know what can happen. If we show our quality then we can beat anyone in the league.
DFB.de: You had five new signings in your starting eleven in goalkeeper Marcel Schuhen, defenders Maximilian Ahlschwede, Oliver Hüsing and Mikko Sumusalo and fellow striker Sabrin Sburlea. Do you think that things went just as well as before?
Ziemer: Any player that arrives at a club like Hansa Rostock knows what’s expected. Every player has quality and is ready to give their all for the club. The team and the fans want to still be in this league at the end of the season. It’s totally normal that we signed new players after our first half of the season up to the winter break. They almost have an advantage because they can be carefree when they play. The preparations have brought us all closer together and you could see that in Wiesbaden.
DFB.de: Are a few training sessions enough for your teammates to adjust?
Ziemer: The way we go about things and the demands of our manager, Karsten Baumann, are the same as when we started the season. Things will start to click properly with time but I know that we can get even better.
The second half of the season couldn’t have begun much better for relegation threatened Hansa Rostock and their striker Marcel Ziemer in the 3. Liga. The 29-year-old’s eleventh goal of the season didn’t just help second bottom Rostock to a 2-1 win against promotion hopefuls SV Wehen Wiesbaden, but he was also able to enjoy a day off with his family in Worms.
“If we show our quality on the pitch then we can beat anyone in the league,” said the former Germany youth international, who has consolidated his position in second place of the all-time top goalscorers list for the 3. Liga with 60 goals in 168 appearances behind Chemnitzer’s Anton Fink (79 goals in 165 games). In the DFB.de interview of the week, Marcel Ziemer spoke to Ralf Debat about the large amounts of new team mates at FC Hansa, the upcoming games against their three closest rivals in the relegation battle and his “brother.”
DFB.de: How much is the successful start to the second half of the season in Wiesbaden a weight off your shoulders Mr. Ziemer?
Marcel Ziemer: There’s no question that it was important for us to have a good start. No one was expecting us to get three points against SV Wehen Wiesbaden but I know the 3. Liga and I know what can happen. If we show our quality then we can beat anyone in the league.
DFB.de: You had five new signings in your starting eleven in goalkeeper Marcel Schuhen, defenders Maximilian Ahlschwede, Oliver Hüsing and Mikko Sumusalo and fellow striker Sabrin Sburlea. Do you think that things went just as well as before?
Ziemer: Any player that arrives at a club like Hansa Rostock knows what’s expected. Every player has quality and is ready to give their all for the club. The team and the fans want to still be in this league at the end of the season. It’s totally normal that we signed new players after our first half of the season up to the winter break. They almost have an advantage because they can be carefree when they play. The preparations have brought us all closer together and you could see that in Wiesbaden.
DFB.de: Are a few training sessions enough for your teammates to adjust?
Ziemer: The way we go about things and the demands of our manager, Karsten Baumann, are the same as when we started the season. Things will start to click properly with time but I know that we can get even better.
DFB.de: After your successful start, your next three games are against SSV Jahn Regensburg, SG Sonnenhof Großaspach and FSV Mainz 05’s Under-23s. They are all huge games against three teams who are also in a relegation battle.
Ziemer: There are big points up for grabs in these three games. It’s vital that we pick up points against every team in our situation, despite where we are in the table. Wehen Wiesbaden are above us but we won and we showed that we can do the same against other teams. The win was a small step in the right direction and further steps have to follow.
DFB.de: Rostock are still second bottom with 20 points from 23 games. How many points do you think you’ll need to avoid relegation?
Ziemer: It’s hard to say and I haven’t really thought about it. The only thing we need to go is to get over the line on the last game. Therefore, we’ll concentrate on the next game as always and pick up as many points as we can.
DFB.de: You’re still in second place in the all-time top scorers list for the 3. Liga. What does this personal success mean to you?
Ziemer: My brother and my friends think more about it than I do. It’s my job to score goals. But I would be lying if I said that to be the second highest goalscorer of all-time in the 3. Liga didn’t make me proud. It’s down to a certain degree of consistency. But it will count for nothing if we get relegated. My priority is for us to stay up and remain in the league and I want to help with my goals.
DFB.de: You’ve been in Rostock since the start of the season. What have you made of your time there so far?
Ziemer: It’s been a lot of fun so far and the club is working at Bundesliga standard. It wasn’t easy at the start to be 750 kilometres away from my family and to see them only once a month. That’s why it took me a while to settle in. My teammate Martin Pett, who I share a house with, was important during this time. He’s like a brother to me and has helped me a lot over the past few months.
