Jan Elvedi has been defending for Kaiserslautern since this season. Before that, he also played in the 2nd Bundesliga for Jahn Regensburg for three years. Both with Jahn and now with Kaiserslautern, Elvedi has made it to the quarter-finals in the DFB Cup and, as an underdog, has already knocked 1. FC Köln out of the competition three times. Now he and the “red devils” are aiming to reach the semi-finals for the first time on Wednesday at Hertha BSC.
Open the people box. Close the people box
Jan Elvedi learned the basics of football at FC Winterthur before ending up in the Challenge League via Cham, Wohlen and then Kriens. From there he dared to make the jump to Germany in the 2nd Bundesliga to Jahn Regensburg in 2020. In 2023, Regensburg were relegated, Elvedi came to Kaiserslautern and immediately established himself as a regular player there.
Jan Elvedi, what memories do you still have of your very first DFB Cup game?
That would have to have been with Jahn Regensburg against my current club.
Correct, on September 13, 2020 there was a 5-4 win after a penalty shootout against Kaiserslautern.
I was incredibly nervous because it was my first game in Germany. I had previously played in the Challenge League. On the way to the game, I became aware for the first time of the reach of the DFB Cup and the German league in general, with all the coverage surrounding the game. I was happy that the stadium was empty because of Corona and there weren’t 50,000 in the stands. Things went well in the game and we got through to the next round, so I have positive memories of my first DFB Cup appearance.
In the third round you met Cologne and won. They then achieved this feat twice more in the DFB Cup, including this season with Kaiserslautern. Are you still allowed to show up in Cologne?
Cologne 3 times, won 3 times, not a bad record. It seems like I’m a Cologne specialist (laughs). It’s also a coincidence that I keep coming across Cologne. When we received this draw with Kaiserslautern, I told the boys that we couldn’t possibly lose. Luckily I’m not in Cologne too often, so it’s not that bad.
Now Hertha BSC is another team of the same class waiting for Cologne: An opportunity or a treacherous task?
A little bit of both. Hertha, relegated from the Bundesliga, has a lot of quality. But we also know that we have a realistic chance of progressing. This is a unique opportunity for us to play in a quarter-final against an opponent of the same class. We are hot and want to go full throttle.
15,000 Kaiserslautern fans will travel to Berlin on a Wednesday evening, that’s unbelievable.
What speaks for Kaiserslautern in this duel?
The win against Schalke last weekend gave us a boost. We didn’t have an easy time, we lost a lot of games and had a lot of unrest in the club. That’s why it was important that we were able to set an example.
It’s been a while since Kaiserslautern’s last big successes. Can you sense the fans’ longing for a special moment like the one the DFB Cup could offer?
Absolutely, the fans’ desire is huge. A good 15,000 Kaiserslautern fans will travel to Berlin on a Wednesday evening, that’s unbelievable. This makes you realize how exciting a DFB Cup appearance can be. We want to give it our all and give the fans a nice evening.
“Only” three Bundesliga teams are still represented in the quarter-finals, with Leverkusen and Stuttgart the two best teams also meeting. It’s a starting point that makes you dream…
It is of course a very tempting starting point. It is all the more important that we only have the Hertha game in our minds. To be honest, the chances of making it to a final have never been better if you still have a bit of luck in the semi-finals. We are extremely motivated to have a really great cup season.
Nico and I hope with every DFB Cup draw that we can finally play against each other.
Her twin brother Nico is also still represented in the DFB Cup with Mönchengladbach. It would be a football fairy tale if there were a direct duel in the semi-finals…
Nico and I hope with every DFB Cup draw that we can finally play against each other. So far it hasn’t worked. If we both get through, who knows, maybe we’ll make it to the semi-finals. I will definitely go see his game in Saarbrücken in a week.
In your 7 months in Kaiserslautern so far, you have already had 3 coaches: Dirk Schuster, Oliver Schäfer (interim) and Dimitrios Grammozis. Is this unrest a problem among players?
Sure, coach layoffs are never nice. You also ask yourself whether you could have done something better, because it is always up to us whether a coach is fired. There was a lot of unrest, especially at the beginning when things didn’t work out with the new coach. The fans were restless. Now we hope that things will look up. We want to take the momentum from last weekend with us and set the next example straight away.
Filip Stojilkovic, a second Swiss, is now part of the team. He just scored a goal against Schalke. Did you know him from before?
Our paths had already crossed, but we didn’t know each other. We played against each other often in the Challenge League when he was at Wil and I was at Kriens. But we were able to quickly establish a connection because we both come from Switzerland and know the same people. I’m glad he’s here. He’s doing well and has just scored his first goal. I hope things continue to go well.
You have been involved in the 2nd Bundesliga for 4 years. How often do you dream of climbing one step higher?
The Bundesliga would definitely be a personal goal. Everyone who plays in the second division wants to move up at some point. I will continue to work on myself and give it my all. Maybe one day a door will open and I can still play in the Bundesliga.
The interview was conducted by Deborah Bucher. Implementation: Daniel Bossi