A Mainz Sports Director Warns Against High Expectations
Mainz Sports Director Niko Bungert has cautioned against setting overly high expectations, following the team’s remarkable rise from the brink of relegation to the upper half of the Bundesliga table last season. “Our experience teaches us that we do well to focus on the here and now” Bungert told the Kicker.
This does not mean the team lacks the imagination to believe something special is possible this season, he emphasized. “The team is highly motivated and ambitious, we have an incredible euphoria in the environment and they’re building on win after win.” There’s no need to fuel this further at the moment, he added.
Bungert sees parallels to successful years under Thomas Tuchel and Martin Schmidt: “The guys see from week to week how much fun it is to win games regularly and they want more” the 38-year-old said.
Ahead of the away game against Leipzig, the team remains confident: “We’ve shown we can hold our own against big teams” Bungert said.