During the extraordinarily long winter break, FSV Mainz 05 acted as a kind of “lone rider” within the Bundesliga.

No other club chose the path that Rheinhessen took, who initially sent their players home for two and a half weeks after the last championship game of 2022 against Eintracht Frankfurt.

The resumption of training operations on December 1st was followed by a week in Mallorca, which also served for team building thanks to generous free time regulations, another week at Mainzer Bruchweg and another home block over the Christmas holidays.

On January 2nd, the actual preparation for the rest of the season finally began, including an intensive training camp in Marbella.

Sven Herzog, who played a key role in working out the concept, does not appear as if, unlike all his colleagues in other clubs, he had discovered the philosopher's stone.

"That's not the Holy Grail," says the Mainz athletics head coach.

"We just had the feeling that these phases would get us through the break better." He himself is curious to see what will happen when theory meets reality: On Saturday, the 05ers will play at VfB in Stuttgart (3.30 p.m. in the FAZ Live ticker for the Bundesliga and on Sky), four days later Borussia Dortmund will present themselves in the Mainz Arena at the end of the first half of the season.

Breaks intended for mental relaxation

Because this winter represents a precedent due to the World Cup in Qatar, there was no opportunity to find out whether such an approach made sense.

The decisive factor for Herzog's considerations was the type of football under coach Bo Svensson.

Teams that rely on ball possession football could definitely reduce the load completely for three weeks and then start again.

"But when you live off the physique like we do, it's difficult.

For the cardiovascular system, it makes a huge difference whether you set the next training stimulus after eight days or after two weeks.”

Because all fitness abilities are subject to a certain half-life, because the ability to absorb oxygen decreases significantly after two weeks without cardiovascular training, the time-outs, which were primarily intended for mental recovery, did not mean that the players could be lazy.

"All in all, they had maybe 14 days off," says Herzog.

On the other days they had to work individually - and not too tightly.

For example, the "Christmas break" looked like Christmas Eve was free, but the first holiday was no longer.

Herzog and his deputy Jonas Grünewald put together nine units within seven days for the 05 professionals.

"Those were tough intervals with changes of direction and sprints in between." The athletic trainer showed understanding for the reactions of the players in the form of emojis ("Some guys gave me the middle finger"), but he didn't let himself be softened.

“Otherwise we cannot guarantee fitness.

And I have to provide the coach with a team that he can kick directly with.”

Herzog is satisfied with the physical condition of the pros a few days before the season resumes.

"The values ​​are already very good, all players tolerated the stress well," he says.

The world championship drivers also integrated quickly.

If the athletic units seem too much, if you get tired of the strenuous work without a ball, the Mainz athletics expert Herzog can tell you about his previous job.

The sports scientist comes from ice hockey.

Before he switched to the 05ers in the summer of 2019, he was responsible for the fitness of the first-class Augsburg Panthers.

"The off-season lasts twelve weeks, when you're the solo entertainer, when the boys only see you.

You can't explain that to footballers."