Carlos Eduardo: “Absolutely heartfelt club” | OneFootball

Carlos Eduardo was one of the first stars of TSG Hoffenheim and a formative player for the team that was promoted to the Bundesliga in 2008 and subsequently thrilled the fans. The former national player returns to Kraichgau for the anniversary matchday against SV Werder Bremen (Sunday, 5:30 p.m./live ticker on tsg-hoffenheim.de). In the interview, the now 37-year-old talks about TSG’s reputation in Brazil, his time in Kraichgau and his feelings when he came to Hoffenheim for the first time – and realized that he had ended up not in a metropolis, but in a metropolitan region .

Carlos, last year you visited the Barra FC training camp and also met TSG Hoffenheim employees. Now you are back in Hoffenheim for the anniversary match day. What was it like getting back in touch with your former club and wearing the club colors?

“It really made me very happy. Hoffenheim is an absolute favorite club for me. I have experienced incredible things with TSG and I associate these colors with a very positive energy. Seeing this jersey again, with so many Brazilian children wearing it, gave me great joy and triggered many memories.”

What do you think of TSG’s involvement with Barra FC in Brazil?

“This is a really nice collaboration, which of course surprised me at the beginning. It’s something special to suddenly meet TSG in my home country after so many years. I had a lot of fun and the Hoffenheim employees had a cool vibe. I think this should be repeated and done regularly. Congratulations to both clubs, something is happening.”

How is the cooperation between Barra FC and TSG perceived in Brazil?

“I received a lot of nice and positive comments afterwards. TSG Hoffenheim is very highly regarded here in Brazil. Maybe also a little bit through Luiz Gustavo and me, we helped shape Hoffenheim’s early days in professional football a little bit; but of course also through Roberto Firmino, the successes in the Bundesliga and the entry into the Champions League. People know and like TSG. The people are honored that they actively support Barra FC – and therefore also young people.”

You played at Hoffenheim from 2007 to 2010, were promoted with TSG and scored 13 goals in 58 Bundesliga games. Do you often think about your time in Hoffenheim?

“Definitely. It was a very special time in my career and I have wonderful memories of it. I learned to be a professional at TSG. The club has allowed me to grow as an athlete – and also as a person. I’m proud that many fans still consider me to be the best TSG players in the club’s history.”

How did the move to TSG come about?

“It was my decision to leave Brazil and go to Germany.” The TSG project convinced me at the time, I liked the club’s ambitions and had the feeling that it would be the right next step in my development. In addition, TSG put a lot of effort into me and showed me that they really wanted me and believed in me.”

But the beginnings were not entirely unproblematic. It is often said that before you moved to TSG you didn’t know that Hoffenheim was a small village and thought you were moving to a German metropolis – and not to the metropolitan region. What were your thoughts when you drove through Hoffenheim for the first time?

“At first I was a little shocked. (laughs) I had previously lived in Porto Alegre, a large city in Brazil with almost three million inhabitants. But I got used to Hoffenheim and village life very quickly and took it to heart. We also had a great team in which I felt very comfortable and we achieved a lot together, which helped a lot. It was a great time.”