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FC Heidenheim: The Underdog Story

July 2, 2024
Tactical Analysis, Bundesliga Analysis

Luton Town’s promotion to the Premier League in 2023 shocked the world. A penniless team, playing amateur football a decade ago, had returned to the top-flight after 22 years with nothing more than team spirit and a sense of community, and whilst they failed to stave off relegation, they nevertheless made their mark in English football. However, they were far from the most impressive promoted side that made their debut in the top-flight.

 

Our story today takes us to the German province of Baden-Württemberg. There, a team playing amateur football as recently as 2009 not only got to the Bundesliga but finished 8th, qualifying for the European Conference League. This is the story of FC Heidenheim.

 

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Something out of nothing – A brief history

 

Our story begins in 2007. The small German town of Heidenheim has been something of a footballing back water. Football has been played in the town since 1846 (hence the name) but, by the late 90s, years of neglect had seen the club become an afterthought, playing amateur football as part of a wider multi sports club. Then, the 90s happened.

 

In 1994, the club hired 27-year-old former player Holger Sanwald to be the head of its football department. Then, in 1999, Klaus Mayer became the head of its economic advisory board. The two men were determined to make something of their small town team and by 2007, Heidenheim were promoted to the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg, the 3rd highest amateur division in Germany.

 

Being in this division meant the football club had to separate from the sports club and so, with Mayer as chairperson and Sanwald as CEO, FC Heidenheim was born. Initially, things went well. Successive promotions between 2007 – 2009 saw the club promoted to the 3. Liga, Germanys lowest professional division (think the German equivalent of a combined League one and two). Then, it started slowing down.

 

Despite successive top half finishes it took Frank Schmidt’s men 5 years to get out of the 3rd division, winning it in 2014. Now while the clubs rise from amateur football to the 2nd division in 7 years was incredible, their toughest achievement began. Unlike other 2nd divisions in Europe, the 2. Bundesliga is home to some big hitters. In the last 5 years alone it’s been home to the likes of Werder Bremen, Hamburg, Hannover and Schalke. How could Heidenheim compete?

 

 

They didn’t have much money (their record arrival cost €3.5m), but they did have some advantages:

 

  •       Mayer ensured the club was financially sound and well run
  •       Sanwald’s reliance on high quality scouting, rather than large transfer fees, to build the team.
  •       A good relationship with the town. This has made Heidenheim an attractive destination for players looking for something different when they’re not playing.
  •       The club is situated in Baden-Württemberg, the 3rd richest region in Germany, meaning its members tended to be able to invest more money in the team than in other regions*.

 

*All professional clubs in Germany must adhere to the 50+1 rule. They’re all treated as limited companies and issue shares, 51% of which must be owned by fans, whether that’s businesses or people. Fans can then choose how much they want to invest in the team.

 

While it’s not the sexiest recipe for success, it gets results. After 9 long years, the club finally won promotion to the Bundesliga in 2023. Given that it took them 9 years to get promoted, they were expected to be terrible — instead, they adapted to the top-flight like a duck to water.

 

Doing what Luton couldn’t, Heidenheim shocked Germany by avoiding a relegation fight and booking their ticket for European football following Kaiserslautern’s loss to Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB-Pokal Final. They finished 8th overall, qualifying for the Conference League and beating the likes of Bayern and Stuttgart in the league. But who’s behind their meteoric rise?

 

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The manager

 

Frank Scmidt is something of an anomaly. A former Heidenheim player, Schmidt is the longest serving manager in Germany, having started managing the club in 2007 when they played amateur football. But has this changed him? Absolutely not.

 

The budgets might’ve got bigger but Schmidt is the same humble man who talks about his colleagues with a rare appreciation that you don’t often see in the modern world. It’s easy to see why his players love him. Combine this with his obsessive belief in his players being well drilled and a refusal to accept less than 100%, you start to see how he’s coached a team from drinking crates of beer after matches to the Bundesliga.

 

The setup

 

One key element of Heidenheim’s season has been their flexibility. Schmidt, always willing to adapt, has used 7 different formations this season dependent on the opponent. That being said, the team relies on a number of core principles. Defensive solidity, tactical resilience and counter attacks.

 

Out of possession

 

While they’ve used several formations, the club tends to set up in a 4-2-3-1 or 4-1-4-1 formation. Using these two formations means that when Heidenheim don’t have the ball, the least advanced central midfielder joins the back four, creating a defensively solid back 5, while the five more advanced players press opponents high up the pitch.

 

 

If opponents are able to advance the ball, the more advanced group of players joins the back 5 to create a compact low block that can have as many as 9 men behind the ball. They combine this with aggressive man marking to force mistakes from their opponents. While this doesn’t always work (they’re 6th in Shots on Target against) keeper Kevin Muller has proven a capable last line of defence (3rd in saves).  

 

In possession

 

Once Heidenheim have the ball, they’ll usually look to build centrally by utilising the passing ability of their centre backs, particularly Patrick Mainka. Once the balls in an advanced position, the focus is simple: give it to Erik Dinkci or Jan-Niklas Beste. Then, one of two things happens:

 

  •       They’ll drift out wide and generate crossing opportunities for Tim Kleindeist (they’ve delivered the 5th most crosses in the league).
  •       They utilise their pace and dribbling skills to cut inside and generate chances, as happened with their 2nd goal against Bayern Munich.

 

While this might not always work, opponents better hope they don’t get corners. The passing ability of their wingers, combined with an ability to attack space in the 6 yard box, has meant Heidenheim are very good at scoring from dead ball situations. They’ve scored 9 goals from dead ball situations this season, 2nd most in the league.

The players

 

Jan Niklas Beste – The star

 

After spending his formative years bouncing round Dutch and German clubs, the former U18 international signed for Heidenheim in 2022, promptly becoming a star. The club’s main creative force, Beste hit 25 goal contributions in the promotion season.

 

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Once there, he didn’t stop, hitting a further 19 G/A to help fire the club to 8th and earning him his first Germany cap. Linked with a host of clubs around Europe, the best thing Heidenheim can do this summer is keep him.

Tim Kleindienst – The target man

 

Someone else who followed a remarkably similar pattern to Beste, was Kleindienst. A former Germany U20 international, by the time Kleindienst got to Heidenheim his career needed a shot in the arm after several seasons bouncing round the 2. Bundesliga. Thankfully, it got it.

 

Since joining he’s scored 83 goals, including 25 the season they were promoted and a further 12 in the Bundesliga, including important goals against the likes of Dortmund and Bayern. Unfortunately for them, his poaching skills were a blessing and a curse. The club have recently agreed to sell him to Borussia Monchengladbach for €7m.

 

Eren Dinkci – The nightmare

 

The odd man out in that his career didn’t need fixing, Dinkci is the most recent addition to this list. He signed on loan from Werder Bremen at the start of last season. Loan signings are always a risk; you never know if they’ll work out. This one did.

 

The young winger used his electric dribbling ability to terrorise defenders this season, hitting 14 G/A in his first season as a first team regular. Unfortunately for the club, this proved to be an issue. While they tried to make him their record signing (still only €5m) he’s been sold to Freiburg.

 

 

Future problems

 

The German connection

 

Like all underdogs, Heidenheim rely on cohesion. A clear element of which is communication. To that end, the club only signs players who speak fluent German, ensuring they can communicate with other players and Schmidt.

 

While it’s served them well before, it now means they’ll be forced to shop in a severely limited talent pool. This, combined with their success massively inflating the value of their transfer targets, means they’re going to be even more reliant on their scouts to do more with less, something we know always fails eventually.

 

Squad depth

 

Qualifying for Europe in your debut season in the Bundesliga is an incredible achievement, let’s not forget that. When your squad is paper thin however, it can throw up problems. Heidenheim don’t have a big squad, using the fewest players of any Bundesliga team last season (22). Combine this with a more congested fixture list and you start to have problems.

 

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They’ve got a choice.

  1.       Spend money to bring in quality depth so they can compete.
  2.       Don’t do that and watch their season end in a spiral of injuries and mediocrity.

 

Lack of Cash

 

Small clubs are stuck in a bit of a paradox: how can they become a big club without having to take any risks? While that’s obviously not possible, the solution is simple. Strict financial planning and investment in the right things.

 

To that end, clubs like Heidenheim invest a little at a time, gradually building the systems to succeed. One area that tends to be neglected in this situation is the playing squad, given players are usually a poor investment. Heidenheim have only spent €18m in the last decade, their record signing cost them €3.5m.

 

While investing in things like facilities is definitely the right thing to do in the long run, if the club are short handed on the field this season it might get a bit bumpy.

 

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So, how can Heidenheim progress? Here’s what’s likely top of their list:

 

  1.       Be more defensively solid & sign Muller’s heir

 

While Heidenheim’s main strength this season as their defensive solidity (9th in goals against), it could be better. They conceded the 3rd most Shots on Target in the Bundesliga and were forced to rely on heroics from keeper Kevin Muller (3rd in saves) to maintain their defensive record.

 

Given their reliance on dead ball situations to score (18% of total goals) and the loss of both Dinkci and Kleindeist (29 G/A combined) the best way for the club to ensure they stay in the Bundesliga is to become more defensively solid. To that end, the club should look to sign more quality defenders. Especially since only Patrick Mainka has proven he deserves to be a consistent starter.

 

 

While they have some bright goalkeeping prospects, they should also consider signing an heir to Muller.

 

  1.       Find replacements for Dinkci and Kleindeist

 

In losing the two aforementioned players, the club has lost 29 goals involvements from last season, more than half of their goals scored. They need more attacking reinforcements, now. While they’ve started already, signing highly rated attacking midfielder Paul Wanner on loan from Bayern, but they need more players who know how to score.

 

On the plus side, they’ve shown before that they can pick out a rough diamond and turn them into a star, hopefully the well hasn’t run dry just yet.

 

  1.       Sign quality depth players

 

As previously stated, European football is both a blessing and a curse. Heidenheim are going to get more money and a hell of a lot more exposure from playing in the Conference League, things that can only be a positive.

 

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At the same time, they probably could’ve done without it. Their fixture list will be a lot more congested, and we’ve already seen how the extra games can derail domestic form, just ask Union Berlin. The solution is simple, get more bodies through the door. The only rule? They can’t be passengers.

 

How the club can fix it

 

Heidenheim’s policy of signing only German speakers might make finding quality new signings difficult. But with a little bit of cash to smooth the process it’s not impossible. Here’s some signings the club should consider:

 

Timo Hubers – FC Koln – CB

 

Timo Hubers is, in short, a beast. The 27-year- old ranked 2nd in the Bundesliga in interceptions and clearances and ranked 7th in blocks. Don’t think he’s one dimensional either, he completed the 2nd most progressive passes of all Koln players last season (104). Rumoured to be available for as little as €4m, he’d be the perfect partner for Mainka.

 

Tom Rothe – Dortmund – LB

 

Rothe, was a revelation for Holstein Kiel this season. The young German showed why he’d be perfect for Heidenheim. Defensively solid, his 41 blocks and 32 interceptions this season would’ve placed 3rd amongst Heidenheim players.

 

 

At the same time, he bagged 8 assists this season and his 14 goals creating actions ranked above all Heidenheim players except Beste. Likely available on loan as Dortmund seek to get him some top-flight experience, Rothe would be a huge asset to Heidenheim. 

 

Fabian Reese – Hertha Berlin – LM

 

The star man of the 2. Bundesliga this season, the former Germany youth international is an ideal replacement for Dinkci, or Beste if the worst should happen. Blessed with the perfect combination of deft footwork and blistering pace, Reese is a defender’s nightmare. He led the 2. Bundesliga in successful take ons and progressive carries this season.

 

A common complaint about good 1 vs 1 wingers is their lack of end product, not Reese, who provided 11 assists this season and led the 2. Bundesliga in Goal Creating Actions. Available for around €8m, the young winger has the potential to follow the path forged by Beste this season. 

 

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Daan Rots – FC Twente – RM

 

Rots, a native of the German border of the Netherlands (so he speaks German), would be an ideal replacement for the departing Dinkci. He is a joy to watch, boasting a mixture of pace, close control and stellar decision making makes it look like everyone else is playing in quicksand. Rots, whose spent his season dancing round opposition players, finished the season with 17 G/A. A bargain for €8m, he’d be a terror on the right hand side of the Heidenheim midfield.

 

Igor Matanovic – FC Karlsruher – ST

 

Matanovic, a German born Croatia youth international, lit the 2. Bundesliga on fire this season. On loan at Karlsruher from Frankfurt, Matanovic spent the season dancing round defenders and looking like a man playing against boys.

 

Blessed with bags of pace, trickery and fancy footwork, not only is he productive (20 G/A) but he’s also a joy to watch. Unlikely to start at Frankfurt due to the presence of Omar Marmoush, he’d be a perfect loan signing who’d benefit Heidenheim as much as they would benefit him.

 

Ragnar Ache – FC Kaiserslautern – ST

 

A former Germany youth international striker whose careers fallen on hard times. Sound familiar? Much like Kleindeist before him, Ache has made a name for himself in the 2. Bundesliga, scoring 23 goals in the last two seasons.

 

A throwback to the era of the poacher, Ache is at his best causing havoc in the box. Whether it’s mopping up 2nd balls or finishing crosses, he’s brilliant with both feet and his head. Valued at around €7m, he might not offer the same as Kleindeist in build-up but give him the ball and he’ll show you what he can do.

 

So, can they build on their success?

 

Let me start by reaffirming something obvious, that a team who were playing Sunday League football 17 years ago are now in Europe is wild. That being said, I think it’s step too far. Small clubs that overachieve are stuck in an awful hell hole. They lose their best players and low cost, high quality replacements become expensive all of a sudden.

 

If that happens, Heidenheim might be lucky to stay in the Bundesliga. But this is a club that’s excelled at wise investment and quality scouting. If they can continue to do both of those things then who knows, they might even continue to shock us all, something they’ve become very good at in recent seasons. 

 

By: Kieran Alder / @The_Own_Goal

Featured Image: @GabFoligno / Sebastian Widmann / Getty Images

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