Werder's former championship winning playmaker Andi Herzog made his way to Weser Stadium on Sunday to observe Hannover defender Steven Cherundolo in his new function as assistant coach to U.S. national team...
Werder's former championship winning playmaker Andi Herzog made his way to Weser Stadium on Sunday to observe Hannover defender Steven Cherundolo in his new function as assistant coach to U.S. national team...
Werder's former championship winning playmaker Andi Herzog made his way to Weser Stadium on Sunday to observe Hannover defender Steven Cherundolo in his new function as assistant coach to U.S. national team coach Jürgen Klinsmann. WERDER.DE had a chat with him.
Andi, what is your impression of the renovated stadium?
Andreas Herzog: That was an experience playing in Weser Stadium with a running track which was not any deeper. The stadium is really fun!
What is your life like as U.S. assistant coach? Beach house in Malibu directly next to Klinsmann's?
Andreas Herzog: No, I live with my family in Vienna. The assistant coach job hasn't changed anything about that. Of course I have to travel a lot. But when I am home, I can be with my family the whole time. That is really important for me.
How did it come about that you became Jürgen Klinsmann's assistant coach?
Andreas Herzog: Well, I had been Austria's U21 national team coach for the past few years and was three times a candidate for the national team post. Three times I sat with our president and had to answer questions if I felt like doing it. Everything is a bit more relaxed by us in Austria. That's why I kind of just grinned at the third time and said that he knew my answer because it was the third time I sat with him in this situation and the federation only had to give their okay. After that did not work out, I looked around a bit. I just kind of wanted to get out of Austria, wanted to expand my horizons.
But how did the contact to Klinsmann come about?
Andreas Herzog: We had talked on the phone a couple times and when he noticed that I was open for something new, he came after me. I told him after 5 seconds that I was on board. I told him that I am not an assistant coach who just sets up cones. We agreed on that. I only told him that he should negotiate with the federation a salary for me that he thought was fair. I trusted Jürgen 100 percent.
How do you know each other actually?
Andreas Herzog: We know each other well from Bayern Munich. He was kind of a loner there and as Otto's protégé I was kind of an outsider when things didn't go well anymore. That really brought us together. Then he brought me to Los Angeles as a player in 2004. We lived near Klinsmann back then. The only bad thing was that he brought me over in March and in April he became the German national team coach. But our relationship has improved even more since then.
Interview by Michael Rudolph
Read part 2 of the interview tomorrow
