FCZ Defender Hack: Fabian Frei's Anger Revealed

What coach Dennis Hediger demands from Alexander Hack. Why Hack’s former teammate Fabian Frei was sniffy. And with whom the German could form a duo like fire and ice.

Published: February 12, 2026 at 10:20 a.m

Updated: 10:14 am

FC Zurich wins against Winterthur after seven games without a win since December
New signing Alexander Hack (32) is convincing and brings confidence and calm to the team
Hack played his first game since a two and a half month break

Blick’s artificial intelligence is still learning and may make mistakes.

Florian RazReporter football

The important game against FC Winterthur has been won. But the Zurich players also remain offensive when they come into the interview zone. “I heard that we also lost in numbers in Basel,” says Lindrit Kamberi (26). “We are the worst team in the league,” says Bledian Krasniqi (24).

There are allusions to statements in the last edition of the Blick podcast “FORZA!”. A reaction with a wink, but also a bit of bite. Good this way! This Zurich team absolutely needs bite if they want to win games.

And as for the statement about the worst team in the league: Maybe that has now been settled? At least the first appearance of Alexander Hack (32) gives hope that Zurich will no longer have to complain about as many system failures defensively as in the seven games without a win since December 6th.

The praise of the FCZ coach

In any case, coach Dennis Hediger (39) is full of praise when he talks about his new defense chief: “He exudes sovereignty and calm.” Well, that may not be visible in the FCZ’s wild opening minutes. But the longer the game lasts, the more solid Zurich’s defense appears.

This is also due to Hack, who is confronted with higher expectations in Zurich. “It’s his job to make the other players better,” demands Hediger.

No small task. But the German seems very calm after the game. “Of course I should bring in my experience from the Bundesliga and also lead the young players,” he says: “But today I didn’t have to do much. The boys did a great job.”

Hack doesn’t see himself at 100 percent yet, “after all, that was my first game in two and a half months.” But you can tell that he is enjoying playing football in Europe again after an unsuccessful trip to the USA.

Reunion with former colleagues from Mainz

And he is looking forward to hopefully soon meeting two old Swiss colleagues from their days in Mainz: Silvan Widmer (32) and Fabian Frei (37). Frei only found out about Hack’s move to Switzerland after the transfer had been completed. “I wrote to him briefly afterwards. He was visibly angry that I didn’t tell him beforehand,” says Hack with a laugh.

Now the first thing for him is to find an apartment in Zurich. He has the mental advantage of having lived in New York most recently. The high housing prices are unlikely to shock him.

On the pitch he will soon meet another veteran who will lead the young FCZ players: Valon Berisha (33), who moved from Linz to Zurich on Wednesday afternoon. Coach Hediger says of the midfielder of the Kosovo national team: “He is completely different from Alex. Valon is on fire, he is always energized, always energized.”

So two like fire and ice? Sounds like a promising combination.

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