"The biggest rubbish we produced out there": Gladbach captain Tim Kleindienst tears into his team-mates in several interviews

At Borussia Mönchengladbach, the 4-3 home defeat to SV Elversberg has completed their poor start to the season and left tensions running high.

Captain Tim Kleindienst publicly tore into his team-mates in several interviews. On the ZDF microphone, he fumed: "We should quickly raise our focus so that it lasts for 90 minutes, and I’ve no idea what the reason is, watch less TikTok or whatever, I honestly don’t care what they do."

After a 3-0 defeat at RB Leipzig on the opening matchday, Gladbach looked on course for victory against Elversberg when they went 3-1 up midway through the second half. Instead, they blew that comfortable lead and let the outsiders turn the game around. The Foals are now bottom of the table and have already shipped seven goals in two matches.

That was unacceptable for Kleindienst. The Germany international also worked himself into a rage on DAZN. In the end, he said, the Elversberg win had been "fully deserved". He then spelled it out: "You’re 3-1 up here, have everything under control and no idea what then happens. Whether there was a power cut somewhere, or what’s going on in some people’s brains."

Scoring three goals at home should, according to Kleindienst, "really be enough against a promoted team, but I think we’ve already been through a phase where we can’t score as many goals as we concede every time." His advice was blunt: "We should start asking a few questions about what we’re actually doing back there."

When he was asked whether the goals conceded were also linked to the many young players in head coach Eugen Polanski’s starting XI, Kleindienst said: "It’s normal that they make mistakes too. But after the second, third, fourth one, it has to stop at some point. And you have to learn a bit within a game too. And that just didn’t happen."

He said they had already "gifted Elversberg the first two goals". But the striker was especially unhappy with the move that led to the visitors’ temporary 3-3 equaliser in the 80th minute. Gladbach lost the ball in the build-up, Mathieu Nguefack then fouled Maurice Krattenmacher, who scored twice. Felix Keidel superbly buried the resulting free-kick in the Gladbach net.

Tim Kleindienst: "Smash the thing into the fans here for all I care, I don’t give a shit"

"We play a pointless pass there and lose the ball again," was Kleindienst’s verdict: "We’re 3-2 up at home, smash the thing into the fans here for all I care, I don’t give a shit. But don’t play this kind of harakiri football. (…)." In the end, according to Kleindienst, it was "the biggest rubbish we put together out there." The striker was no longer on the pitch by then, having been substituted in the 77th minute for Isac Lidberg after a decent performance but without scoring.

Next weekend, Gladbach face fast-starting Freiburg on the third matchday. SC Freiburg sit top of the Bundesliga table after opening with two wins.