Blick: David von Ballmoos, when are you getting married?
David von Ballmoos: Oh, that’s the beginning of an interview! In June 2023.
You’ve been engaged for half a year.
Sarina and I have known each other for over twelve years. Time is not pressing (laughs).
Sarina is the sister of Sion defender Joël Schmied. Have you ever attended a Sion game for purely private reasons?
This almost always overlaps with our appointments. But Sarina is there from time to time. My relationship with the Schmied family is very close because they lived close to the stadium, which is why I often went to Joël’s place when he was playing in YB’s U21s. I’m really part of the family there.
As a good Emmentaler, do you intend to buy a farmhouse for your family for the future – or is that a cliché?
I prefer to be in the city. And Sarina is not a country woman either…
Or will your place of residence soon be England if your Premier League dream comes true?
I always have dreams. But I don’t know what’s up with England. I once said that the Premier League was a dream of mine, that’s true. But when I’m asked regarding it, it’s almost like: Why aren’t you finally in England? As if I really wanted to leave. I am still totally happy at YB and in Bern.
And as a goalie, at 27 you don’t panic.
I would never have anyway.
Kinder?
There’s still time.
Let’s talk regarding the last messed up season. You were allowed to watch 15 games from the outside because of your injuries. You played 21 times. So you can watch the games from both control rooms. With some distance: what was missing?
The mood has suffered from the defeats. It’s normal that we haven’t functioned as one as before. After the successes of previous years, we mightn’t deal with the failures, it was a completely new situation for many in the team. And so, over time, we went into games with the wrong attitude. Namely with the fact that we had something to lose. Even when we were leading. It used to be a matter of course that we then get through the games. This self-image was missing.
And your absence wasn’t a factor either. It was the same with and without you.
It is exactly like that. But YB never defines itself through individual players anyway. It won’t be in the new season either. YB doesn’t really have any stars.
For real? Hoarau, Nsame, Sulejmani and Co.?
They are made into stars from the outside. Internally they are not. And that is exemplified from the very top. Even when things weren’t going well, you didn’t panic, you never got hectic. Very clear words and analyzes came from above, but also signs of calm and trust.
Nevertheless, coach David Wagner had to go. He was the new wind that blew a year ago. Now a new wind is blowing with Raphael Wicky. How does this wind blow?
I don’t want to make any comparisons. We are now concentrating fully on Raphi and on responding to his ideas. What I’ve already noticed: He shares the same values as the club. That fits.
You say «Raphi». Are you all familiar with him?
(studying for a long time) I think so… Except maybe the U21 players. But that doesn’t matter, many just say “trainer” or “coach”. Me too often.
YB must not have any other goal than recapturing the championship title. But no one puts it in their mouths…
We will still work out internally what the official objective is. At the moment we just feel this spirit of optimism that we want to take with us. We’re really looking forward to this season.
And your fans too. YB broke the number of 19,000 season subscribers three weeks before the start of the season. Last year following three titles in a row, that only happened with the first game. That’s madness!
We just have the best fans…YB has definitely gotten closer to people over the past few years. We have the right structure and, as I said, there is calm. Then the fans will forgive you a season like the last one.
Credit Suisse Super League
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