“Number 10... is back!” Hertha Berlin’s Ondrej Duda was lauded by his teammate Salomon Kalou following a game-winning performance against Schalke on Matchday 2 – and it looks like the Slovakian playmaker could be a major force this season.
He’s not a new signing, but it feels like he is. Duda’s time with Hertha has been blighted by injury so far, but on Sunday he continued his strong start to the season by scoring both goals in a 2-0 away win over last season’s runners-up.
In the dressing room afterwards, Kalou sang that Duda scores when he wants, but the goalscorer himself was unsure whether he had netted twice in a game at professional level before. The 23-year-old hadn’t, but it wasn’t just his proficiency in front of goal that stood out against the Royal Blues.
Duda had also been tasked with making life difficult for Schalke’s deep-lying midfield general Sebastian Rudy, a player who was making his debut in Gelsenkirchen after switching from Bayern Munich.
“Everyone is obviously happy for Ondrej because he had a tough year last year,” Hertha winger Valentino Lazaro said, after seeing Duda star in only his 22nd league game for the Old Lady. “Our game plan suited him perfectly. His job was to disrupt Rudy’s build-up play, and then he got free space."
Two minutes after Daniel Caligiuri had missed from the penalty spot for Schalke, Duda exploited that space perfectly to fire the visitors into an early lead.
With the Slovakia international calling the plays, the Old Lady looked threatening on the counter attack from there on in. In injury-time, Duda planted a free-kick in the top corner to give Hertha six points from six following their opening-day win over Nuremburg.
The classy attacking midfielder said he practiced that kind of free-kick on the training ground in Berlin, and Hertha goalkeeper Rune Jarstein – who kept a second clean sheet this season – confirmed as much.
“Ondrej got two fantastic goals, and I’m very happy for him,” the Norwegian said. “He had already started well in pre-season. He’s always strong in training, above all with his finishing. Thankfully he’s finally been able to show that in a game again.”
It’s been a long, hard road for Duda to get back to making headlines on the pitch. He arrived at Hertha in the summer of 2016, shortly after he clinched a second league title with Legia Warsaw in Poland and scored against Wales at UEFA Euro 2016. Henning Berg, a former manager of his at Legia, had predicted a bright future.
“Duda is a very talented player with incredible skill,” ex-Manchester United and Norway defender Berg told the Berliner Zeitung.
“He reads and understands the game like almost no other. I’m certain that he will become a successful Bundesliga player.”
Just days after Duda arrived at Berlin, however, he picked up a knee injury that eventually required an operation. That delayed his Hertha debut until February 2017, and in total he made just three substitute appearances in his first season in the capital.
Fitness problems again played their part in 2017/18, during which Duda made only 17 league appearances. The high point was a goal in a memorable comeback draw against Bayern Munich last October.
“Everyone knows that the first year I was injured seven months,” Duda said after his double against Schalke. “After I don’t play, [in the] second season, too much.
“One time I play, one time I don’t play. For players it’s also difficult when… he doesn’t have confidence. Then it’s difficult to show something. But now I’m ready for 90 minutes.”
Hertha’s top brass have been patient with Duda, and consistently praised his ability while he battled back from injury and searched for his best form. The player himself said in April that he just needed to stay fit and get a run of games in order to prove his worth.
He got that during a highly successful pre-season, when Hertha’s switch to a three-man backline seemed tailor-made for the former Kosice player. With an extra body in midfield, some pressure was taken off Duda, giving him the freedom to concentrate on what he’s good at.
“He can play unexpected, surprising passes,” Hertha manager Pal Dardai said ahead of the new season. “To do that, he has to be brave and make the right decisions during a game.
“Misplaced passes can happen – that’s no issue. The problem is when a player hides. He doesn’t.”
Duda certainly stepped up to the plate against Schalke, but he felt it was his contribution to the team – rather than his goals – which were key.
“Yeah of course it’s important [to score goals] but I don’t think like this,” he told bundesliga.com after the game.
“I have to score. I have to show something to the coach. The coach knows which player I am. I concentrate only to do my job – in defence, in offense – and work for the team. Not only for myself.”
As a delighted Kalou said, Hertha’s number 10 is back. Duda is planning to stick around, too, which could be very good news for the Ivorian striker and his teammates.