“We had to invest a lot” – Ilzer reflects on Hoffenheim’s first home win of the season

Christian Ilzer was pleased to see his Hoffenheim side finally secure their first home win of the season.

TSG Hoffenheim finally recorded their first home victory of the season on Saturday, beating 1. FC Heidenheim 3-1.

In a post-match interview, Hoffenheim coach Christian Ilzer described his side’s early ruthlessness as key to the win.

“We were warned about Heidenheim; they were capable of hurting us. That’s why we had to invest a lot today to get the home win. It was key to our success that we were efficient right from the start and took the lead with our first real chance through Fisnik Asllani,” Ilzer said.

The 48-year-old was pleased with much of his team’s performance, but expressed concern about how the game developed in the later stages.

“The first half was a very mature, very grown-up performance. We also came out well in the second half, but then we let a few things slip. We need to address that. If we lack that consistency and drive, then we’ll run into problems. We’re happy that we won, but there are also areas where we want and need to improve.”