The atmosphere in Inselparkhalle reached boiling point, and the jubilation was palpable. In the Germany Futsal national team’s first international fixture against England, Timo Heinze put the ball over the line after seven minutes and 40 seconds, marking an historic moment for the sport of futsal in Germany. The 30-year old team captain spoke to DFB.de about the groundbreaking goal, the 5-3 against the Three Lions, the surprise visit of DFB President Reinhard Grindel in the dressing room and the second match-up with England on Tuesday (18:00 CET) in Hamburg.
DFB.de Mr. Heinze, what was going through your mind after scoring the first ever official goal for the German national futsal team?
Timo Heinze: At that moment, I had no thoughts whatsoever. I do not know what I did or where I ran, but of course the feeling was wonderful. It was a feeling of pure elation. It was only after the game when I saw that pictures that I realised it was Michael Meyer and Nils Klems who celebrated with me – at the time I had not realised. I think my team mates realised the significance more than I had!
DFB.de: The celebrations after the goal were very emotional. A show of the spirit that exists in the team?
Heinze: That was especially so after we made it 2-2, when our heads had dropped a little. That gave us more and more motivation straight away. Having the possibility of bringing such a wave from the bench is more important than people realise. Especially in the alien setting, the spirit within the team was very important for us.
DFB.de: Even before the game got underway, there was an outstanding atmosphere at Inselparkhalle. How did you find the experience of the songs and the anthem in the stadium?
Heinze: It is almost a pity that those moments past so quickly and we could not indulge in them a little more. It was like something out of a Hollywood film, despite the need to focus on the game. Still, at that point I found myself thinking: I have waited so long for this, and now I am finally here.
DFB.de: Did the team play almost to their absolute limit in that first game?
Heinze: I hope not. We cannot yet get a real, full assessment of ourselves. Despite that, I think that we put in a very strong performance. We will continue to develop further and will look to jump to the top. That is the nature of the game. If you take the unfamiliar setting into account, you really have to say that we looked like a very good futsal team.
DFB.de: In the line-up, head coach Paul Schomann brought in a lot of very experienced players. Do you think that was the right decision?
Heinze: That was a factor. One advantage of that is that those players will meet situations that they have already experienced. I would still say, though, that younger players in the team would not have made things worse. Every player has their purpose for different situations.
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The atmosphere in Inselparkhalle reached boiling point, and the jubilation was palpable. In the Germany Futsal national team’s first international fixture against England, Timo Heinze put the ball over the line after seven minutes and 40 seconds, marking an historic moment for the sport of futsal in Germany. The 30-year old team captain spoke to DFB.de about the groundbreaking goal, the 5-3 against the Three Lions, the surprise visit of DFB President Reinhard Grindel in the dressing room and the second match-up with England on Tuesday (18:00 CET) in Hamburg.
DFB.de Mr. Heinze, what was going through your mind after scoring the first ever official goal for the German national futsal team?
Timo Heinze: At that moment, I had no thoughts whatsoever. I do not know what I did or where I ran, but of course the feeling was wonderful. It was a feeling of pure elation. It was only after the game when I saw that pictures that I realised it was Michael Meyer and Nils Klems who celebrated with me – at the time I had not realised. I think my team mates realised the significance more than I had!
DFB.de: The celebrations after the goal were very emotional. A show of the spirit that exists in the team?
Heinze: That was especially so after we made it 2-2, when our heads had dropped a little. That gave us more and more motivation straight away. Having the possibility of bringing such a wave from the bench is more important than people realise. Especially in the alien setting, the spirit within the team was very important for us.
DFB.de: Even before the game got underway, there was an outstanding atmosphere at Inselparkhalle. How did you find the experience of the songs and the anthem in the stadium?
Heinze: It is almost a pity that those moments past so quickly and we could not indulge in them a little more. It was like something out of a Hollywood film, despite the need to focus on the game. Still, at that point I found myself thinking: I have waited so long for this, and now I am finally here.
DFB.de: Did the team play almost to their absolute limit in that first game?
Heinze: I hope not. We cannot yet get a real, full assessment of ourselves. Despite that, I think that we put in a very strong performance. We will continue to develop further and will look to jump to the top. That is the nature of the game. If you take the unfamiliar setting into account, you really have to say that we looked like a very good futsal team.
DFB.de: In the line-up, head coach Paul Schomann brought in a lot of very experienced players. Do you think that was the right decision?
Heinze: That was a factor. One advantage of that is that those players will meet situations that they have already experienced. I would still say, though, that younger players in the team would not have made things worse. Every player has their purpose for different situations.
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DFB.de: DFB President Reinhard Grindel paid the team a visit after that historic win.
Heinze: He came into our changing room after the match, congratulated us on our brilliant start and wished us the best for the future. It looked like he really enjoyed our performance, so we were absolutely chuffed. The atmosphere was obviously fantastic after the win.
DFB.de: The previous weeks have been anything but wild. A syndesmosis put your international debut at risk. How were those last few weeks for you?
Heinze: It is one of those things that can get better within that timeframe, but there is no guarantee. It was a mixture of hope and fear for me. I was given a really good rehabilitation programme, without which I would not have been able to recover. Playing in the league one week before the international match kept my feet on the ground. The relief was enormous, although I knew that I was not yet 100% physically.
DFB.de: To top it all off, you were completely out of it with a flu-like infection for two day.
Heinze: I arrived already pretty weak and hoped that things would get better. However it got worse during the night and I had to get my head around the fact that I might not be there for the first international match. That it has now taken such a turn for the better is just unbelievable.
DFB.de: You started to feel unwell after your goal.
Heinze: I realised something wasn’t right so I had to ask to be brought off and was physically sick in the changing room. Afterwards I went to support the boys on the bench and on that note, I would like to say a massive thank you to them and the coaching team for putting their faith in me. That was not to be taken for granted given that I couldn’t even think about training before last Saturday afternoon, let alone even playing.
DFB.de: Will you be back on the pitch for the second match against England?
Heinze: I’ve given it absolutely everything to be there for the first match. Now I’m feeling a bit weak again and I can’t say whether or not I’ll be alright for Tuesday. Of course that would be a great shame to miss out but I’m really happy that I will be there for this historic moment. Nothing can stop me from being at this game.
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