Germany: DFB Pokal
FULL TIME
AFTER PENALTIES
(Pen: 6 - 5)
4 - 4
(2 - 2)(0 - 2)
Braunschweig
Hertha BSC
B. Behrendt (63), L. Lauberbach (66), M. Pherai (91), B. Henning (118)
D. Selke (10), M. Maolida (42), L. Tousart (103), D. Lukebakio (106)
By Peter Weis@PeterVicey

Schwarz highlights positives after Pokal defeat: "The trick is not to be blinded by the result."

Speaking to reporters after Monday's training session, Hertha BSC trainer Sandro Schwarz did his best to put a positive spin on his side's early DFB Pokal elimination. 
Sandro Schwarz found his new coaching tenure get off to quite the inauspicious start on Sunday evening. In his first competitive match at the helm of Hertha, the 43-year-old saw his side thrown out of the cup by the very same side that scalped Bruno Labbadia's charges in the first round two years ago. Just like in that 2020/21 Pokal match, four goals weren't good enough for "die alte Dame."

"Surely many people noted the amount of heart we displayed on the pitch," Schwarz noted at his Monday presser, "If we simply play our kind of football with good intensity and speed, we can catch fire."

The Berliners entered the tunnel with a 2-0 halftime lead following goals from Davie Selke and Myziane Maolida. Two second-half goals in quick succession from Braunschweig nevertheless ensured that the match would head into extra time. Schwarz made clear he didn't want to be too hard on his team for their defensive lapses.

"[The defense] exerted decent dominance and clamped off many counterattacks," the gaffer noted, "Admittedly, I'd like to see us keep it up for longer than 55 minutes. We've already had our analysis meeting this morning and shown the defenders the film."

Schwarz praised his team for the scoring two goals in the second period of added time after falling behind 2-3 in the first. Not having much to offer on the eventual Braunschweig equalizer and subsequent loss in the penalty lottery, the trainer simply called the match "an extreme experience" that will ultimately "serve the team in their development."

He then added that the team had also been shown positives in the film session.

"I saw so many positives," he noted, "Things that highlight our style of play. The real trick is not to be blinded by the result."

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