When coach Dieter Hecking, 60, took over VfL Bochum, the club was a Bundesliga club like never before. In the interview, he explains how he liberated the team from lethargy – and why he now tells so much private.
The meeting with Dieter Hecking takes place high above the Ruhr area. Half area can be seen from the fourth floor of the Bochum stadium center, even the Schalke arena in the distance. Hecking, 60, born in Castrop-Rauxel and grew up in Soest in East Westphalia, took over the coaching office at VfL Bochum four and a half months ago. At that time, the paint hole club was in the last place in the Bundesliga, cut off with a single point. Now, 17 games later, VfL is third with 20 points and dreams of staying class again. The veteran Hecking, who has already experienced many clubs and situations, as a trainer (Aachen, Hannover, Nuremberg, Wolfsburg, Gladbach, HSV) and most recently as sports director of the 1. FC Nürnberg, has set a lot in motion in Bochum.