Jan Siewert revealed the despondency around the Huddersfield camp this week after their Premier League relegation was confirmed, but he is adamant he did everything in his power to avert such a scenario.
Siewert took charge of the Terriers in mid-January, replacing David Wagner, who had guided the club to the top flight and then kept them there against all odds during an unforgettable 2017-18 campaign.
However, Huddersfield were 10 points adrift of safety when Siewert arrived with a brief to secure their status and Town have taken only three points in the nine games the 36-year-old has overseen.
A drop to the Sky Bet Championship was guaranteed following Huddersfield’s 2-0 defeat at Crystal Palace last weekend – their eighth loss under the German manager.
Siewert said: “It was a big disappointment, which is totally normal after relegation. This can’t be a normal week because everyone is disappointed.
“The focus the whole time was staying in the Premier League and working for this. But I can look in my mirror because I tried everything to keep this squad in the Premier League.
“Each player has to do it on his own now. He has to look in his mirror to say ‘did I really do everything so this club could stay in the Premier League?’
“These are the things the players have to go through then react on the pitch to it.
“I don’t know if something has lifted now because each player is different. Every professional player loves pressure in a way because that’s why we do the job.”
Siewert, who has been publicly backed by chairman Dean Hoyle this week, has already started preparing for the future and when asked whether he will stay in West Yorkshire, he defiantly responded: “Yes.”
Siewert was speaking ahead of the visit of Leicester this weekend and pointed out that his players should be champing at the bit to feature at the elite level in the coming weeks.
He added: “It’s about enjoying playing in the Premier League because you never know in football or life when you will come back to the Premier League.
“It’s more about when can you play Leicester the next time? When can these players play Liverpool? When can they play Watford?
“I don’t want to forget any of the other ones because they are all great teams. Let’s enjoy these games and go away and be passionate about winning these games.
“The challenge for the players is to go into each game with the disappointment but knowing there is still something to achieve.”
Furthermore, Siewert believes the pressure will be transferred onto the shoulders of their opponents.
He added: “We’ll have to look at the opponent now because each of these opponents we play, no one wants to lose against a team who is relegated. There’s lots of pressure on them now.”
