U20 national coach Christian Künast in an interview / World Cup preparation begins today
It's starting for the U20 national team! Starting today, preparation for the 2016 IIHF U20 World Championship Division I in Vienna (December 13th - 19.12.15th, 26) begins at the Federal Training Center in Füssen. The new national coach Christian Künast invites his XNUMX-man squad onto the ice for the first time. Until the middle of next week, tactics and game systems will be refined in several units. In addition to Künast, national coach Marco Sturm will also be on the ice. “Marco will take care of the strikers and the power play, Steffen Ziesche will focus on the defense and the outnumbered game,” explains Künast, explaining the distribution of tasks among the competent coaching team, which is completed by assistant coach Benedikt Weichert. In the following interview, Künast talks about the preparation, the character of the team and the goal: The goal is to return to the world elite in the end.
Mr. Künast, preparations for the World Cup start today in Füssen. What exactly does this look like and has the squad planning already been completed?
We will use the days in Füssen to optimally adapt to each other and work on the fine-tuning. For the World Cup, the squad must be reduced from the current 23 + 3 to 20 + 3 players. We can only register 20 + 2 players for the World Cup in Vienna, but the third goalkeeper will still be there the entire time.
At the end of the preparation there is a game against Slovakia. What do you expect from the game and what demands does the national coach place on his team?
This will be our dress rehearsal next Thursday. Even if we want to feel good at the end of the preparation, the result will be of secondary importance. First and foremost, we want to perform as a team in our final acid test, stick to the game plan and implement the guidelines. We trainers will also have the opportunity to try out or adjust a few things.
How do you rate your team and what do you expect from the players at the upcoming World Cup Div. I in Vienna?
I think that we are a very strong team overall. We have some players who have recently performed really well for their home clubs and are also among our leading players. In addition to the goalkeepers, I am thinking in particular of Stefan Loibl, Andreas Eder, Maxi Kammerer, Kai Wissmann, John Rogl and Manuel Wiederer. We need players who can take responsibility, deliver their best performances and bring them onto the ice in the decisive situations.
So the players who were put in focus are the key players in the German team?
For me, all of my boys are key players. Everyone has a key skill that they bring to the team and thus complete it. The players I have named are those whose role I see as taking responsibility and making decisions that advance the team as a collective.
In your opinion, is direct promotion back to the top division possible?
Yes! Definitely. We want to get promoted again, that's the goal. But we also know how difficult it will be. The nations are really strong and I think it will ultimately be a very, very close race.
Who will this head-to-head race be with?
It's hard to say because none of the teams should be underestimated. Nevertheless, I see Latvia as the favorites. They will certainly be our strongest opponents. Here two to three players can make the individual difference. But Norway and Austria will also start with strong teams. Our first World Cup opponent Kazakhstan is basically like a club team that plays together for most of the season and has great potential.
What will the corresponding game tactics or game plan look like?
We want to dictate every game and act more than react. As I said, we don't have to hide, we have talented and hard-working players who can take on leadership roles at the top international level. All teams can play ice hockey at this level and everyone wants to be at the top at the end. We have to be willing to give it our all and do the little things right. That will ultimately make the difference.