1899 Hoffenheim travel to La Manga for winter training

Having flown to into Murcia, Matthias Bauer was ready with the team bus to complete the journey and managed to get the 1899 troop there without any hitches. Ahead of the players were 7 days of intensive training under the scrupulous eye of new manager Marco Pezzaiuoli, as well as two friendlies against Spanish third division side Real Murcia on Wednesday and FC Twente of the Dutch Eredivisie on Sunday.

New signings along for the journey

Amongst the team were some new faces, as 1899 have already made themselves busy in the transfer market with two new signings. Both Roberto Firmino, who signed from Brazilian second division side Figueirense Futebol Clube, and David Alaba who joined on loan until the end of the season from FC Bayern München as part of the deal that saw Luiz Gustavo move in the other way, were meeting their teammates for the first time. For Marco Pezzaiuoli who took over the reigns from Ralf Rangnick just days before the flight was looking forward to the opportunity. "It's an incredible challenge for me taking over the role of manager at this club. There's tons of potential within this team and I'm really looking forward to seeing what this new chapter in my career has to offer."

The new manager took charge of his first training session on Monday, albeit a light training session, in the "La Manga Club Football Centre", before they headed back to the hotel by bike for an evening meal and an early night.