Cedric Brunner on head injuries and moving to Schalke

It was a shock moment. The pictures give a glimpse of the bad when Cedric Brunner and his opponent Jonas Wind collide their heads on April 9 in the game between Bielefeld and Wolfsburg. The Swiss remains motionless. Brunner is knocked out for the second time in his career, the diagnosis is craniocerebral trauma.

Brunner returns to the pitch for ten minutes on the last day of the season to say goodbye to the fans after four years in Bielefeld. But fear is still playing along, even if the doctors see no reason for alarm. “Mentally it was almost more difficult than physically,” says Brunner in retrospect. “Because I tend to think too much rather than too little.”

Doubts and an unfamiliar situation

The 28-year-old is also concerned about his future. He has no contract and does not know how his career will continue. The aftermath of Corona on the transfer market is noticeable, the offers are manageable. A return to Switzerland is out of the question, Brunner would like to play abroad for a few more years, if possible in a top 5 league. The English Championship is also an issue for him. An unusual situation. “Otherwise I always knew when, how and where to continue.”

In addition, the injury is still in the back of your mind. “Because even after my career, I still want to be clear in my head.” In addition to his life as a football professional, Brunner is doing a correspondence course in psychology so that he doesn’t “lose two or three years” if he hangs up his football boots. His plan is to start his bachelor thesis at the end of the year.

For the time being, however, priority will be given to football. At the beginning of July, the offer from Schalke, the traditional club from the Ruhr area, which has returned to the Bundesliga after one season, becomes more concrete. “Compared to Bielefeld, this is a different house number,” says Brunner. The training ground at Schalke is bigger, the infrastructure better, everything a step more professional. “But the pressure and expectations are higher.”

Meeting old acquaintances

Brunner is ready to step on the gas again. He no longer feels the after-effects of his crash. In the last friendly against Twente Enschede (1:3) he is in the starting line-up. On Sunday, Schalke will make a guest appearance at Bremer SV in the Cup. But the primary goal is to stay in the league. Coach Frank Kramer, whom Brunner knows from their time together in Bielefeld, knows what he has in Zurich.

Cedric Bruner himself

The 28-year-old right-back started his football career at FC Maur and later in the youth department of FC Zurich. In 2018 he moved abroad to Bielefeld in the second Bundesliga via Fanionteam. He made 108 games for Arminia and celebrated promotion to the top flight in 2020. In 2022, Bielefeld was relegated again and Brunner switched to the traditional club Schalke 04, who managed to get promoted directly after a year in the second division. Brunner had appearances in the U16 and U17 selections of the Swiss national team.

With Victor Palsson (31), Brunner meets another old acquaintance in Gelsenkirchen. The former FCZ teammate even takes him in for a few days after his arrival. But the paths separate again. While the adventure at Schalke turns for the Icelander after just one season – he moves to the USA – for Brunner it is only really beginning.

If the right-back succeeds, the World Cup in Qatar in November may still be an issue. Brunner, who was last on call, takes it easy. “A national squad would be a nice side effect. At the moment I’m concentrating fully on Schalke.”

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