TAKTIK

Sascha Funk
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Twenty years coaching team sport, now watching from Bangkok while Europe sleeps. A weekly coach's-eye look at German football — with detours into volleyball, the NBA, fight sport, and whatever else is worth watching. Ten minutes of recap, ten minutes of the coach's read, one closing segment on something a coach's brain can't ignore. Not tactical Xs and Os. Not hot takes. The show for people who want to understand what they actually watched. New episodes every week. Before Europe wakes up. Hosted by Sascha Funk, Professor, Coach, Fighter, & host of FUNK !T Mindful Media & Communication.

  1. Sep 22

    Bayern Hang Seven On Union Berlin, Kane Breaks The Century Record, Dortmund Stay Boringly Perfect

    Harry Kane became the fastest player in Bundesliga history to a century of league goals, and did it inside a 7-0 demolition of Union Berlin that also featured Michael Olise's first career hat-trick. That alone would headline most weeks. Instead it has to share the podium with Borussia Dortmund, who ground out a 1-0 win at Stuttgart to stay perfect through four games and go top of the table, and with SC Freiburg, whose three-game winning start finally ended in a wild 2-2 at Frankfurt. Elsewhere: Werder Bremen came back from 2-0 down to beat Augsburg with a stoppage-time winner, Borussia Mönchengladbach fired their head coach and then lost 4-3 in a seven-goal circus against Mainz, Hamburg won a league match for the first time this season, and Bayer Leverkusen beat RB Leipzig to continue building some real form. In Europe, Leverkusen won their Europa League opener while Hoffenheim lost theirs. And Jürgen Klopp named his first Germany squad — all 44 players of it — leaving out Maximilian Beier, who responded the very next day by scoring the winner for Dortmund. Down in 2. Bundesliga, Hertha Berlin are six games into a perfect season, with 1. FC Nürnberg two points back in second.

  2. Sep 14

    Freiburg Top The Table, Bayern Survive Elversberg, Hertha Berlin Are Actually Perfect

    SC Freiburg are top of the Bundesliga after three matchdays. Say that sentence out loud a few times, because it doesn't get less strange. A 5-0 demolition of ten-man Gladbach puts them there on goal difference over an equally perfect Dortmund, who needed goals from Fabio Silva and a Felix Nmecha brace to see off Paderborn. Bayern Munich, meanwhile, had to go to a town of 13,000 people and grind out a 2-1 win over newly-promoted SV Elversberg, who very nearly repeated their opening-day miracle against Leverkusen — and who gave Bayern a real fright before Harry Kane's 72nd-minute winner settled it. Elsewhere: RB Leipzig went from a historic 4-1 Champions League beating at Como to putting five goals past a hapless Hamburg side that still hasn't scored a league goal this season. Schalke picked up their first win with a dramatic 3-1 away at Union Berlin. Augsburg and Leverkusen played out a VAR-heavy 2-2. Frankfurt beat rivals Mainz to hand Adi Hütter his first win back in the job. And down in 2. Bundesliga, Hertha Berlin have won all five of their games and sit top of the table, with 1. FC Nürnberg right behind them on a nearly-as-good run of their own.

  3. Sep 7

    Schalke Held Bayern, Elversberg Won Again, and Leipzig Came Back to Earth

    Bayern's unbeaten start to the season continues, but their 59-match scoring streak doesn't — held to a goalless draw by newly promoted Schalke at the Veltins-Arena, in front of a crowd that celebrated the point like a trophy. Jamal Musiala made his first appearance back from the neurological condition that caused him to collapse twice in preseason — Kompany confirmed it's seizure-related and said a recurrence "wouldn't be a big deal," which we unpack carefully. Elversberg are two wins from two Bundesliga matches. After shocking Leverkusen on opening day, they came from behind twice at Gladbach — with their own head coach sent off at halftime — to win 4-3 through a stoppage-time Maurice Krattenmacher winner. Population 13,000, and undefeated. RB Leipzig came back to earth after their emphatic opening win, losing 3-1 at Werder Bremen. Leverkusen answered last week's shock defeat with a 4-0 win over Union Berlin. Dortmund won 3-2 at Hoffenheim but confirmed their big summer signing Giannis Konstantelias is out for months with a serious knee injury. Also: Mainz 5-0 Hamburg, Augsburg 4-1 Frankfurt (their second big win in two matches), Freiburg 1-0 Paderborn, Stuttgart 4-1 Köln. Next weekend: Union Berlin travel to Schalke, and Bayern host Elversberg — suddenly not the formality it looked like a fortnight ago.

  4. Sep 1

    Elversberg Shocked Leverkusen, Bayern Are Bayern, and Schalke's Homecoming Went Badly

    Matchday 1 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga is done. Bayern beat Stuttgart 5-1 — business as usual, with Ismael Saibari setting up two goals off the bench on his debut, and Musiala still absent while his return is carefully managed following two preseason collapses linked to a neurological issue, not just heat exhaustion as first reported. The real story: SV Elversberg, newly promoted, population 13,000, beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 in their first ever Bundesliga match. 2-0 up inside 9 minutes. Cole Campbell — the ex-Dortmund winger we flagged as their smart summer signing back in July — scored the second. Leverkusen's captain and goalkeeper both admitted their team was disorganized in the first match of their third head coach in a year. Schalke's long-awaited Bundesliga return went badly — 3-0 away at Augsburg, down to 10 men after a 62nd-minute red card. Edin Džeko made his Bundesliga comeback after 5,734 days away. One road defeat doesn't undo a mid-table prediction — the real test is next week at home against Union Berlin. Also: RB Leipzig 3-0 Gladbach, a winning debut for new coach Martín Demichelis. Köln 3-2 Hoffenheim, with Said El Mala — who nearly left for Dortmund this summer — on the scoresheet. Union Berlin 3-3 Frankfurt in a six-goal thriller. Dortmund 2-0 Hamburg overshadowed by a serious knee injury worry for Konstantelias. Mainz 0-0 Paderborn. Freiburg 4-1 Werder Bremen. Next weekend: Schalke host Bayern, Leverkusen host Union Berlin in the match that tells us if their opening-day collapse was a blip.

  5. Aug 24

    Jeddeloh Humiliated Heidenheim, Tottenham Got Battered, and One Week to the Bundesliga

    SSV Jeddeloh II, a fourth-tier Regionalliga club, beat 1. FC Heidenheim 5-2 in the DFB-Pokal first round — one of the great cup shocks in recent German football. Heidenheim's coach Frank Schmidt was suspended and watched from the stands as his team missed a penalty and conceded five. Elsewhere in the Pokal: Frankfurt 11-0 St. Tönis, comfortable wins for Stuttgart, Leverkusen, Hoffenheim, and Leipzig. Bayern and Dortmund don't play their first-round ties until September 1-2. Premier League kicked off — Tottenham spent close to £300M this summer and got beaten 3-0 by Brentford on De Zerbi's opening day. Panic spending meets a brand new spine with zero time to gel. La Liga also underway — Real Madrid and Barcelona both had delayed starts due to World Cup recovery. Mourinho's actual Real Madrid return: a grinding 2-1 win at Espanyol, substitute Carlos Espí scoring in the 90th. Flick's Barcelona debut: a statement 5-0 win over Elche, Raphinha and Fermín López both scoring twice. Two completely different coaching philosophies on display in the same weekend. One week out from Bundesliga kickoff. Bayern vs Stuttgart at the Allianz next Friday. Full state-of-play check on the title race, the European race, and the relegation battle heading into matchday one.

  6. Aug 17

    Two Weeks to Kickoff, Musiala Fainted, and Bayern Are Still Favorites

    Two weeks until Bundesliga kickoff — Bayern vs VfB Stuttgart at the Allianz on Friday August 28. Full season preview. Musiala scare: fainted from heat exhaustion during Bayern's friendly against Leipzig (30°C+ in Munich, dizziness and circulatory problems). Bayern also lost Laimer and Kim in the same match — three first-teamers down before the Supercup. Schalke 0-3 Real Madrid at the Veltins-Arena — Mbappé, Huijsen, Espí. Reality check for the newly promoted side, though it shouldn't scare anyone off their season. Full title race: Bayern still favorites (double last season, goals record, Kompany to 2029). Dortmund challenge but Kovač's contract is a live question and they lost Adeyemi to Barcelona. Leipzig's Demichelis is the wildcard after Leipzig fired a coach who finished 3rd. Leverkusen have their third coach in a year — from a title two years ago to genuine uncertainty now. European race: Hoffenheim took a real hit losing Touré to Newcastle for ~€50M but stay in the mix. Frankfurt lost Nathaniel Brown to Bayern with no equivalent incoming. Stuttgart consolidate after their Pokal final run. Relegation: Elversberg and Paderborn are the drop picks. Köln and Hamburg fight for the playoff spot — genuinely a coin flip. Schalke, with their fanbase and finances, land comfortably mid-table at 13th, not scrapping for survival. Full 18-club prediction table. Klopp names his first Germany squad in September. Musiala's health is the story to watch. Next Friday: Franz Beckenbauer Supercup — Dortmund vs Bayern.

  7. Jul 27

    Seven New Managers, Adeyemi to Barca, and LeBron Stacked Another Team

    Seven big managerial changes this summer. Andrea Pirlo just added to the list — Italy appointed him Friday after Guardiola and Ancelotti both said no. Plus Jürgen Klopp at Germany, Zinedine Zidane at France, José Mourinho back at Real Madrid, Rúben Amorim at AC Milan, Massimiliano Allegri at Napoli, Enzo Maresca at Man City. Half of them national team jobs. All three of Europe's biggest football nations — Germany, France, Italy — have new coaches going into September. Transfer window is chaos. Real Madrid signed Bernardo Silva on a free — hijacked from Barcelona — plus Konaté free from Liverpool, Cucurella €55M from Chelsea, Dumfries €20M from Inter. Mourinho building defensively. Bayern spent €110M on Nathaniel Brown (€55M from Frankfurt) and Ismael Saibari (€55M from PSV). Barcelona signed Anthony Gordon for €80M from Newcastle - and Karim Adeyemi for €29M from Dortmund. The Adeyemi transfer has Germany asking why: inconsistent Bundesliga output, disciplinary problems, missed CL final chances. Barcelona's bet: Hansi Flick can revive him. Tottenham spent €267M after finishing 17th — Tonali at €100M leads the panic buying. Newcastle are being pillaged. Bayern strengthens, Bundesliga weakens. Same story as always. Still in play: Julián Álvarez to Barcelona (Arsenal also bidding), Michael Olise to Real Madrid, Rodri chase, Bruno Fernandes to Galatasaray. NBA: LeBron signed with Philadelphia. Two-year, $8M deal — 90% pay cut from his $53M last season. Sixers starting five: Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Jaylen Brown, LeBron, Embiid. Most stacked team he's ever joined. Charles Barkley on Stephen A. Smith: "The number one knock on LeBron for older guys like myself has always been, 'Yo, man, you always stacking your team.'" Coach's-eye on whether Barkley is right — LeBron's teams: Miami (Wade+Bosh+Allen+Battier), Cleveland (Irving+Love), LA (AD+Doncic+Reaves), now Philly with four All-Stars. Is he strategic or is he not a builder? Both, and neither. Next episode: season preview. Premier League Aug 15. Bundesliga Aug 21.

  8. Jul 20

    Spain Are Champions, Argentina Were Paraguay With Messi, and Mourinho Is Back

    Spain are World Champions for the second time in their history. Ferran Torres scored a 106th-minute extra-time winner against 10-man Argentina after Enzo Fernández was sent off in stoppage time for a reckless tackle on Pau Cubarsí. Emiliano Martínez was heroic — 11 interventions — but couldn't stop Argentina's third World Cup title bid. Spain finish the tournament with 7 clean sheets (a record) and just 1 goal conceded across 8 matches (the fewest ever by a champion). They swept the individual awards — Rodri Golden Ball, Unai Simón Golden Glove, Pau Cubarsí Young Player. Mbappé takes the Golden Boot with 10 goals after his brace in the maddest third-place playoff ever played: England 6-4 France, 10 goals, most in a WC match since 1982. Honest coach's-eye on Argentina: they were Paraguay with Messi. Grinding, fouling, sitting deep, hoping for a Messi moment. Won three straight knockout matches with late comebacks that weren't tactical control — they were Messi bailing out an aging squad. In the final, when they had to actually play against Spain, they had zero shots on target. Four yellow cards, one red. Argentina now hold the record for most red cards in World Cup finals. Bigger picture: preparation beat talent this World Cup. Luis de la Fuente is 65 — the oldest coach to win a WC. Spain won because they were the most prepared. England finished third for the first time since 1966. Germany goes home under Klopp. Ronaldo, Messi, Kane — three legends move on. Plus a transfer teaser: Mourinho is back at Real Madrid with Konaté, Bernardo Silva, Dumfries, and Cucurella. Bayern spent €110M on Nathaniel Brown from Frankfurt and Ismael Saibari from PSV. Anthony Gordon to Barcelona for €80M. Tonali to Spurs for €100M. Proper breakdown next week.

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About

Twenty years coaching team sport, now watching from Bangkok while Europe sleeps. A weekly coach's-eye look at German football — with detours into volleyball, the NBA, fight sport, and whatever else is worth watching. Ten minutes of recap, ten minutes of the coach's read, one closing segment on something a coach's brain can't ignore. Not tactical Xs and Os. Not hot takes. The show for people who want to understand what they actually watched. New episodes every week. Before Europe wakes up. Hosted by Sascha Funk, Professor, Coach, Fighter, & host of FUNK !T Mindful Media & Communication.

Information

  • Creator
    Sascha Funk
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    20
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Sascha Funk
  • Show Website
    TAKTIK