Frank Schmidt is an unbelievably compelling character with a really interesting history with Bayern Munich. Growing up as a Bayern fan, he was part of a TSV Vestenbergsgreuth side, then in the Bavarian fifth tier, that came up against a version of Bayern with the likes of Oliver Kahn and Lothar Matthäus in the 1994/95 DFB Pokal. Yet the minnows somehow knocked the Bavarian giants out, with final 1-0 scoreline immortalized via a monument by Vestenbergsgreuth.
Schmidt would initially come close to repeating the trick as a manager, managing FC Heidenheim to a thrilling 5-4 loss to Bayern in the 2018/19 edition of the DFB Pokal before getting one over the Bavarians again in the 2023/24 season with a 3-2 upset. Schmidt and Bayern’s story is not yet over, either, as Schmidt proved key to bringing star youngster Paul Wanner to Heidenheim over several other bigger clubs. Wanner sat down to explain the process:
“I have to say, I had a very good feeling from the beginning. I think the decisive factor was when my mom, dad and I were here. Frank Schmidt gave me the feeling that everything was right and that it was exactly the right step for me,” Wanner said, via Sky Sports. “That’s why it didn’t take long for me to decide to move here.”
So what is Schmidt like? What is his approach to helping players develop? “He wants and demands a lot from you, but he is very fair and honest in his work. He addresses the things that are going well, but also the things that are going badly. He always wants the players to develop under him. And that only works if you address things exactly as they are. And he does that very well. He has so much experience. He can help any player, especially a young one like me. That is extremely good for me.”
Schmidt’s time at Heidenheim has been a model of consistency, which is a healthy contributing factor to the staggering 17 years he has been in charge of managing the club, at the time of writing. Wanner is certainly right when he says that Schmidt has the kind of incredibly extensive experience that any player could benefit from.
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