Interview with Andreas Albert (Sports Director, TSV Bad Königshofen): “Looking at the table doesn't hurt.”

TSV Bad Königshofen, which has participated in the playoffs twice in recent years, is currently at the bottom of the table in the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL). In this interview, sporting director Andreas Albert describes how the Franconians are dealing with this unfamiliar situation, assesses the performances of the new signings, and outlines the success of the club's social media activities in Asia.

Andreas Albert, after two consecutive playoff appearances, your TSV Bad Königshofen team is now at the bottom of the table due to a below-average start to the season. Does it hurt to look at the table?

Looking at the table doesn't hurt. After all, we knew that the league had strengthened, we lost our top player Jin Ueda, and we also committed to rejuvenating the team, which we absolutely have to do because guys like Bastian Steger, 44, and Daniel Habesohn, 39, aren't getting any younger. But they are so experienced and will help us again this season.

How hopeful are you that TSV has already played the heavyweights 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT, TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell, and Borussia Düsseldorf, as well as Champions League starter ASC Grünwettersbach?

Looking at the schedule, we knew we could start with 0:10 or even 0:12. We actually wanted to win the first match at TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau, but we let two singles slip away, and the match against Düsseldorf was also much closer than the result shows. The victory in Grünwettersbach was important so that the gap to the teams ahead of us wouldn't become too big. The victory in Grünwettersbach also showed that the team is fighting and believes in itself. All four players, even though Filip Zeljko was only allowed to watch this time, were able to hold their own in Grünwettersbach with great morale.

The league is more balanced than ever before in the current season. Is fear of relegation an issue for your team?

We were aware that we would be struggling at the bottom of the table this season. But we are not afraid of relegation because the team has heart and we have great fans in our Shakehands Arena. Our opponents will have to score points in Königshofen first, because anything is possible for us at home, but our team also performs well away. So Matthias Braun and I, as well as our team leader Tomasz Kasica, are pretty calm, relaxed, and level-headed in management.

How is the club environment reacting to the current situation after the successes of the last two years?

The club environment is, of course, well informed and oriented. It was clear to all of us, our sponsors, partners, and helpers, that it would be a difficult year without Ueda, because Jin is a player who can beat anyone in the world on a good day. But as is often the case in the life of an athlete or in the media, when you're at the top, everything is calm. But when you suddenly find yourself at the bottom of the table, people who normally don't say anything suddenly start talking to you and asking, “So, what's going on with you guys?” But you have to get through it.

After the aforementioned break caused by Ueda's departure, can your newly formed team already be considered as close-knit a community as in previous years?

Yes, we are still a close-knit community; nothing has changed and nothing will change. The difference between Bad Königshofen and other teams is that we have been playing with the same core group of players for a long, long time. Basti Steger is in his seventh season with us, Filip Zeljko is even in his tenth—nine years in the Bundesliga and one year in the second division. Kilian Ort has left us, but we now have Andre Bertelsmeier, who has a similar character, a fighter who is very popular with our fans, especially the Ping-Pong Ultras. And Daniel Habesohn is a team player anyway. All of our players speak German, speak one language – and they all know what it's all about.

How would you rate the performances of your new signings Andre Bertelsmeier and Daniel Habesohn so far?

Andre and Daniel settled in very quickly, became real Königshöfer boys within a very short time, are popular, fight for the club, and put the club above everything else. Andre tries to play as many games as possible for us, and Daniel says that if there are conflicts between tournaments and the Bundesliga, the league takes priority for him – you need players like that, because everyone knows that players can't give 100 percent when they've just stepped off the plane.

How would you rate the two individually?

Andre has already won two matches in the league, right in the preliminary round of his first TTBL season. That's great, you can't expect more than that. I'm almost glad that he doesn't win every time, because if it happened too quickly, the media would go crazy again. He needs to stay grounded and continue to work his way up. Königshofen is exactly the right club for him, and I'm convinced that he will help us in the coming years.

And Daniel Habesohn?

Daniel had a few teething problems at the beginning, but then he managed to beat Eduard Ionescu and most recently Tiago Apolonia. Both victories did him good, and I'm sure he'll build on this performance for the rest of the season.

Despite being 44 years old, Bastian Steger has once again proven himself to be virtually indestructible so far this season, celebrating victories against Anton Källberg and national player Ricardo Walther. How do you explain these achievements?

Bastian Steger is truly a phenomenon. When I watch him in the box and see his muscles and overall physical condition, I think to myself that this guy could easily pass for 25 or 26. He doesn't have an ounce of excess fat, he's super fit, still fully motivated, experienced, and isn't afraid to pull off two more bombs at 8:10 when a younger player might falter. Basti is truly an exceptional player, and we're delighted to have him in Königshofen for this year and next. He is our leader, he is our captain, he is the favorite of our fans and our sponsors. When I see that he is still beating players like Källberg and Walther at his age, it shows that a well-rested Steger will continue to be a very, very important man for us in the coming games.

Finally, a topic somewhat unrelated to table tennis: Bad Königshofen has built up a relatively large fan base in China, Japan, and South Korea through its social media activities. How has this area developed?

Yes, we are doing really well on social media with YouTube videos, reels, and Instagram. Since the match against Saarbrücken, two young Chinese people from our neighboring town of Bad Neustadt have been posting on the social media channels Redbook and Weibo in China. We had over 100,000 fans within two weeks. I never thought that social media would become so important.

What was the reaction to Chinese superstar Fan Zhendong's guest appearance with Saarbrücken in Bad Königshofen?

In China, the shuttle service, the warm welcome in our Shakehands Arena, and the whole atmosphere were very, very well received. They love us in China, where we're not known as Bad Königshofen, but as the SpongeBob Club. It's quite funny. Fans write to us and, of course, ask for autograph cards. There's been a real buzz around us, which we now want to capitalize on.

Thank you very much for talking to us, Andreas Albert.

Interview: Florian Manzke