In this interview, the "temporary head coach" talks about the turnaround, his reputation as an emergency helper and a very special monkey. Since December 23, the former SCB champion coach has been working for the club in a new role as head coach.
Since Leuenberger's arrival, the Fribourg team has been transformed, scoring points in all twelve championship games and gradually moving closer to the play-off places. In an interview with the Keystone-SDA news agency, Lars Leuenberger talks about the reasons for the upswing, his reputation as an emergency helper and reveals what a monkey has to do with the Dragons' title premiere.
Lars Leuenberger, you can look back on a very intense and successful few weeks. It must feel like a dream right now. It all happened so incredibly quickly. From zero to one hundred, so to speak. It also turned our family life completely upside down, as the plan was for me to be home much more often this winter. I don't think I'll really realize it all until after the season. It sounds strange, but that's exactly how it feels. I started work here on December 23, celebrated Christmas with my family on December 24 and packed the last few things for the Spengler Cup.
The next day I went straight to Davos. It was a great experience, simply wonderful. What did this do to the club? Everyone was simply happy. It gave us new motivation, new hope. In English, there is the expression 'having a monkey on your shoulder', which stands for a burden, a problem or a worry that you carry around with you.
This monkey is now gone. The timing was perfect, of course. Things continued in a similar vein after the turn of the year. The team managed to take the momentum with them and score points in all championship matches despite a mammoth program. Does that surprise you? I say that to the team and that's how I'm living at the moment: 'We're taking it game by game'.
