On the training pitch he is the personification of ‘Laid-Back’ and is always game for a laugh, off the pitch though he is better known for his attitude and often cutting, direct statements. Torsten Frings made his position very clear once again in Schruns and left absolutely no doubt that he has every fate in this Werder Bremen team: “We had more bad luck last season than most other teams have had in the history of the Bundesliga – and still we finished second, which shows how strong we are.” He continued by saying: “With this team we can achieve something on the international stage. Others have much, much more money than we do but we make the best of what we have at our disposal and are successful thanks to our homogeneous team.”
Frings was extremely precise and definite with his answers as he took questions from the gathered press on Friday afternoon – and he had plenty of praise to dish out too. Certain members of the media were particularly interested in the results of the fitness tests which a number of players went through on Thursday afternoon, and Frings had a very concrete answer: “I’m always open to try new things, especially after the experience I gained with the national team. I may not be getting any quicker or agile at my age, but maybe the team will get something from those tests.” The midfielder also took the opportunity to welcome the new fitness coach Benjamin Kugel: “He’s doing a good job and is a nice guy. He gets on well with the team.”
Considering his status at the club, Frings was also asked his opinion on the debate about the search for a new striker: “I think we need a new one,” said the 31 year old, and explained just why: “We want to pull off something in the Champions League, and that won’t be easy. We work well together as a team and are a well oiled unit, but that’s not enough to be in amongst the big boys. To get there we have to take a further step.” Frings comments were by no means meant as criticism of the current strikers: “It’s not as if our strikers aren’t good, but all going well, we could be looking at 60 games this season – then we need another guy up front.” The German international had some particular praise for Martin Harnik, although he is not yet at the level of Sanogo, Rosenberg or Almeida: “He could become very important to us and score some crucial goals.” The experienced Frings is of course well aware that it can be a mistake to put such young players under too much pressure.
source: werder.de
