The dismissal of Mark van Bommel as trainer of VfL Wolfsburg has not yet had the desired effect at the Bundesliga club. Successor Florian Kohfeldt did not win in his last four official matches and needs a small miracle on Wednesday to visit OSC Lille to secure wintering in Europe. After the most recent defeat against 1. FSV Mainz (3-0) captain Maximilian Arnold took the opportunity to give Van Bommel a kick.
“First of all: I got along very well with him (Mark van Bommel, ed.)”, the captain of Wolfsburg begins in conversation with kicker. “But even if you shouldn’t do it, you compare it as a player. And although we won the first four games of the season, we lacked the intensity of the past seasons. We were careless, something we never have in recent years. “The victories felt different. That is a responsibility of the players, but also of the coach. We have to give everything, we have always done that. Only then can we achieve results.”
According to Arnold, Wolfsburg “needs some time” to implement Kohfeldt’s philosophy. The only 39-year-old coach took over from Van Bommel at the end of October. The first three matches resulted in a win, but now the team has been waiting for a win for four matches. Arnold is not worried for the time being. “Of course it’s not going well,” the midfielder admits. “But nothing has been lost yet. We need a victory over Lille and we will give everything for that. Kohfeldt knows how to put the finger on the sore spot and uses a high intensity during training. This group needs that.”
Arnold himself was already taken off at half time against Mainz. The 27-year-old midfielder will run out of his contract in 2026 and does not rule out his career with the Wölfe ends. “I’m not that far yet, I also know that things can turn out very well in football. But I can also well imagine that this will be my last club.” Arnold, who has been under contract with Wolfsburg since 2011, feels “incredibly comfortable” with the current number eight in the Bundesliga. “When I think of another club, then maybe Dresden, because that’s my home. Wolfsburg means a lot to me,” concludes the midfielder, who was called up to the national team for the first time in seven years in November.