'Perhaps there might be the smell of bratwurst'

For the fifth-tier team from Baden-Württemberg this is the first appearance in the domestic cup competition since the merger of 2010 – and the match against Bayer 04 is without doubt the highlight of the short history of the club. And if it’s down to the Werkself then it will stay that way. After the painful exit at the semi-final stage last year against Bayern Munich, the desire is still there for a second Black and Red cup success following on from 1993. “We definitely want to go through. But we all know what can happen in first round games – Bayer 04 experienced the negative side away to Lotte two years ago and only came through in extra time against Karlsruhe last year,” said Herrlich, who knows what he’s talking about from his playing days with the Champions League winners Borussia Dortmund when they were knocked out in the first round by Regional League side SG Wattenscheid in 1996.

Herrlich calls for commitment

In spite of the huge gap between the two clubs in the German pyramid, it is important not to underestimate the supposedly lesser opponents. The approach to this game has been professional with assistant coach Nico Schneck and head analyst Marcel Daum watching Pforzheim on several occasions. Above all, the environment in front of 5,000 fans at the Holzhof Stadium in Pforzheim will be different from the Bundesliga or even compared with the last friendly away to Valencia in front of a crowd of 45,000. “To give the lads an idea we’ve shown them pictures of the stadium: Arriving by bus will be different, the pitch probably won’t be in the condition we’re used to and perhaps there will be the smell of a bratwurst,” said Herrlich who called a number of times for his players, in their role as favourites, “to absolutely maintain focus” – both in their commitment ahead of the match and on the pitch. “We know what to expect. Pforzheim will be very disciplined. They are very good at defending against counter-attacks and have three or four very big players in their ranks – we’ll have to be wide awake at set pieces.” Beyond that, the 46-year-old boss called on his players to show “enough commitment in the final third to score goals.”

six missing against Pforzheim

In spite of the absence of Charles Aránguiz (knee), Leon Bailey (cold), Karim Bellarabi (rehab training), Lukas Hradecky (rehab training), Joel Pohjanpalo (ankle) and Panos Retsos (thigh), Herrlich is full of optimism ahead of tomorrow’s first competitive match in the new season. “After lots of individual discussions I feel the experience of Lotte two years ago is still very much in their minds and the players don’t want to experience anything like that again. That’s good enough reason to produce 100 per cent effort.”

600 Werkself fans are expected in the visitors section amongst the 4,800 spectators at the sold out Holzhof Stadium.