Christian Heinle is in the front row for the last time today in the Bundesliga against Altach (5 p.m.): The interim trainer of SV Guntamatic Ried will work with the new head coach Robert Ibertsberger from January. In the OÖN interview, the 36-year-old from Grieskirchen talks about the experience he has gained, the best experience and what he is particularly looking forward to during the winter break.
OÖNachrichten: You are setting up one last time on an interim basis – is there nostalgia?
Not really, actually, because the time as interim head coach has been longer than we thought.
You came here two and a half years ago as a sponsorship employee. Her ascent was not an everyday occurrence …
At that time I was still the Upper Austrian League coach in Grieskirchen when I started my career in sponsorship. In the summer of 2020 it turned out that I was allowed to take over the amateur team, six months later I came to the professionals as an assistant trainer.
What did you take away from the front line over the past few weeks?
It was an extremely valuable experience for which I am very grateful. Of course, I was a trainer in the lower house for six years – even if everything is much more professional in the professional area, not much has changed for me in terms of the content. The whole thing was a new experience: dealing with the media, the feeling of standing by your side in a full Josko arena. Unlike in the amateur field, you are also responsible for a much larger staff.
What was your best experience?
The highlight was the game against at home Salzburg with the 2: 2 in of stoppage time. I’m extremely proud of the footballing process that the team has gone through in the past few weeks, scenes like against LASK, when we were outnumbered and tried to solve situations in a playful way. The team has shown an identity of what we have worked for.
If you win against Altach, is Ried fully in the running for the championship group?
If we were to say goodbye to the winter break with a win, it would be a huge deal. One must not forget that the team had to digest the fact that from one day to the next the head coach was no longer there. We had to move closer together in the supervisory team. If I only think of our video analyst Clemens Zulehner, who was also an assistant trainer for the past few weeks. I spent evenings with him analyzing matches and saw him more often than my wife. For that reason alone, I would be incredibly happy if I managed to win today.
Robert Ibertsberger takes over in January – what was your first impression?
Robert was already there this week, looked at everything and also looked over our shoulders during training. From the first moment we were on the same wavelength and on the technical side. It was very exciting and I’m looking forward to working with him.
You have registered for the upcoming pro license course. Do you want to be the head coach in professional football?
I’ll be honest: Before that, I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to. But now my big goal is to be able to work as head coach in the Bundesliga one day.
The short winter break comes to Altach. Look forward to to be at home more?
We all urgently need this break. I am happy if I can switch off now and will enjoy the days off with my wife and our son (note: Jonathan was born on September 2nd).
Source: Nachrichten
