SC Magdeburg relies on calm

The joy of the "hammer month with great games" was great at SC Magdeburg, but the disappointing results are increasingly weighing on the minds of players and coach Bennet Wiegert. "We have to keep calm, questioning everything doesn't help any more than overturning everything," said the 42-year-old ahead of the home game against FC Barcelona, who are still unbeaten in the Champions League, on Wednesday (8.45pm/Dyn and Dazn), "We have to radiate calm and confidence and not be choleric or lash out. I don't know if that's the right approach. My feeling is that's the only thing that can work."

In particular, the 27:28 defeat in Hanover last weekend, which the German double winners let slip from their grasp with a 0:5 run in the final minutes, is still deep-seated and, according to the coach, "hasn't been processed at all." The only thing that would help now would be to bring the game home. In this situation, FC Barcelona is not necessarily seen as an opponent to build up against, Wiegert wants to imply joy for the game with work, talks and understanding, "you can't just assume a snap of the fingers."

Especially because three pillars are missing in Philipp Weber, Michael Damgaard and Magnus Saugstrup - probably also on Sunday in the Bundesliga home game against SG BBM Bietigheim (4.30 p.m.). The team from Baden-Württemberg "just radiate the opposite of us. It's an easy game for them," said Wiegert about the newly promoted team, who "have more points than one or two experts" had expected. That's why "it's not appropriate to talk about a must-win at the moment."

In view of the tense situation in the Bundesliga table with a view to catching up with the top of the table and a possible early exit from the Champions League, Wiegert has only one motto: "We need the points to keep our goals alive."