BSK kicker Gertig

Marathon man of the Western League comes from Bischofshofen

Mohamed Khalil (left) has only missed 80 minutes this season.

(Bild: Andreas Tröster)

Bischofshofen player Konstantin Gertig is one of the Pongau team's undisputed regulars. The 20-year-old enjoyed his training at Bayern Munich and Red Bull. In the long term, he wants to fight his way back into the professional ranks.

No player has played more minutes (2,250) in the current Westliga season than Bischofshofen's Konstantin Gertig. The central defender is the only player in the league not to have missed a single second of the 25 games so far. "I thought to myself that not many have managed that," said the perennial favorite when asked about his performance. He puts his success down to his hard work off the pitch. "I pay attention to sleep and nutrition. But you can also treat yourself every now and then," explains the 20-year-old, who wants to "look after his body like a temple".

Konstantin Gertig

(Bild: Andreas Tröster)

For Gertig, who played in the youth ranks of Bayern Munich as well as in the Red Bull Academy and Liefering, his own body is the most important asset as a sportsman. If you are also lucky enough to get so many minutes on the pitch, a young footballer can develop. "It's a good sign for me that I was able to convince the club of my performance. It was important for me to get a lot of playing time here at a relatively high level," explains the player who never leaves the pitch.

In the long term, however, he sees himself back in the professional game. The psychology student has not yet decided whether he will take the plunge this summer or in the winter. "I'm very happy here. Let's see what happens in the summer." In any case, his online studies mean he is independent of location.

After six games without a win, things have recently started to look up again under new coach Thomas Schnöll. With two wins, the team from Pongau got back into the fight for the top three. "In the league, you have to show what you can do every matchday. We felt that. It depended on the day for us at times," said Gertig, annoyed by the inconsistency. However, his team will be looking to continue their upward trend at Silz/Mötz today and show what they can do.