TSV 1860 Munich: Don't talk so much before you're successful

It's nice to have such a short travel time, said Thomas Dähne last Tuesday evening. This time, instead of traveling 300 kilometers to a Franconian village in the Toto Cup, it was only 35 kilometers to TSV Geiselbullach, where TSV 1860 Munich fulfilled its duty. The draw for the round of 16 takes place on Monday, and the next opponent will be more challenging. It's a bit of a shame, of course, that the Lions, conversely, cannot be underdogs in a home game this weekend, as they did not qualify for the nationwide DFB-Pokal competition. It's unusual, but it almost means something like a peaceful summer time has begun for the Lions. With very clear conditions for the time being.

At the district league club, some players who had seen little to no action at the start of the third division were at least able to show off their skills on a small stage: striker Patrick Hobsch, for example, scored four goals in the 8-0 victory, and Max Christiansen the first after just seven minutes. That's a chance to show off, says coach Patrick Glöckner. Above all, these appearances demonstrate that the starting eleven for the important games is very much fixed at the moment, while everyone else has to travel around the country to attract attention. No matter how much one says that everyone is needed for the current season with its ambitious goals, everyone from player number twelve onwards will have to be patient.

The only regular starter on the pitch at kickoff in Geiselbullach was the goalkeeper. "The coach came to me yesterday and said I'd play at least the first half," said the unemployed Thomas Dähne shortly after the final whistle. Often, and this was also the case during Dähne's predecessor Marco Hiller's tenure, the second goalkeeper gets a chance in cup matches, but 20-year-old Paul Bachmann was only a substitute.

Dähne, in turn, is one of six new signings who played in the first two third-division matches. For the 31-year-old Bavarian, the move to Munich was advantageous for many reasons: Although he gained Bundesliga experience at Holstein Kiel, he was not a regular there. Here he can "be the number one, I play every game, which is really great for me," he says. At the same time, Sechzig is a "huge club" with enormous appeal, which can be seen in games with a carnival atmosphere like the one in Geiselbullach. And so he has settled in very well: "It's true that I have a lot of self-confidence now, I think you can see that in the last few games too," he says in a slight Bavarian dialect that he learned a little at his previous clubs such as Kiel and the Polish and Finnish first-division teams Wisla Plock and HJK Helsinki.

Sechzig's new signings, apart from Florian Niederlechner and Kevin Volland, have been conspicuously understated in the media eye. Another new striker, Sigurd Haugen, for example, says it's "an honor" to play alongside the two returning players. Moreover, he still speaks very little German – after his first goal, in the interim 3-0 win against VfL Osnabrück, he appeared before the press for the first time ("Awesome day, I think"). Siemens Voet has so far only attracted attention as a reliable worker in the newly formed back five, as has Manuel Pfeifer as a so-called wing player. Dähne, on the other hand, was also brought in to lead the way without being loud. "I'm at an age where I've already seen a lot. We have some young players. I try to guide them," he says. And: "I want to lead with performance; you can't win games with words." Such words are welcome to hear, especially at a club that rarely has a quiet time.

Perhaps the initial, greatest enthusiasm, due to arguably the best squad in a long time, has ebbed somewhat, having only picked up a single point in Essen and almost getting into trouble in the closing stages of the 3-1 win against Osnabrück. But Dähne acts as an extension of the club management when he says on behalf of the team about the euphoria: "We shouldn't let that concern us at all. Those who dream high can fall very quickly." Something like the final 20 minutes of the game against Osnabrück "can break our necks in some games." So: Don't talk so much before you've achieved success.