DFB Cup winner against league champions. The duel between VfL Wolfsburg and FC Bayern München on Tuesday (20:30 CET) is the highlight of the second round of the DFB Cup. Wolfsburg’s U21 player Maximilian Arnold has faced Bayern six times in competitive matches. His record stands at two wins and four losses. In an exclusive interview with DFB, Arnold discusses his previous matches against Bayern, De Bruyne’s departure and his aims with the national team.
DFB.de: Mr. Arnold, you are facing Bayern München in the second round. Is it a good or a bad thing to face them this early?
Maximilian Arnold: A good thing, every footballer looks forward to these kinds of games. Bayern München are a good draw – especially for the fans. We have a chance in our own stadium. Cup games are always special, the cup win was the greatest achievement of my career to date. We want to go to Berlin again.
DFB.de:Most recently in the Bundesliga, you lost 1-5 in Munich. Bayern striker Lewandowski scored five goals in nine minutes. What have you learned from that match?
Arnold: It’s hard to explain what happened in this game. We played well in the first half, and had we defended a bit better later on, then it would have been a lot more difficult for Bayern to break us down. We need to work on that.
DFB.de: Will you pay more attention to Lewandowski after that result?
Arnold: Robert Lewandowski is one of eleven players who are very, very good. It would be wrong to just focus on him. Furthermore, there won’t be anything like his five goals again for a while. The defeat was tough to take, no doubt.
DFB.de: Your team have shown that they are capable of causing Bayern problems. Last season you won 4-1, and in the Super Cup you won on penalties. Have Bayern got stronger since then?
DFB Cup winner against league champions. The duel between VfL Wolfsburg and FC Bayern München on Tuesday (20:30 CET) is the highlight of the second round of the DFB Cup. Wolfsburg’s U21 player Maximilian Arnold has faced Bayern six times in competitive matches. His record stands at two wins and four losses. In an exclusive interview with DFB, Arnold discusses his previous matches against Bayern, De Bruyne’s departure and his aims with the national team.
DFB.de: Mr. Arnold, you are facing Bayern München in the second round. Is it a good or a bad thing to face them this early?
Maximilian Arnold: A good thing, every footballer looks forward to these kinds of games. Bayern München are a good draw – especially for the fans. We have a chance in our own stadium. Cup games are always special, the cup win was the greatest achievement of my career to date. We want to go to Berlin again.
DFB.de:Most recently in the Bundesliga, you lost 1-5 in Munich. Bayern striker Lewandowski scored five goals in nine minutes. What have you learned from that match?
Arnold: It’s hard to explain what happened in this game. We played well in the first half, and had we defended a bit better later on, then it would have been a lot more difficult for Bayern to break us down. We need to work on that.
DFB.de: Will you pay more attention to Lewandowski after that result?
Arnold: Robert Lewandowski is one of eleven players who are very, very good. It would be wrong to just focus on him. Furthermore, there won’t be anything like his five goals again for a while. The defeat was tough to take, no doubt.
DFB.de: Your team have shown that they are capable of causing Bayern problems. Last season you won 4-1, and in the Super Cup you won on penalties. Have Bayern got stronger since then?
Arnold: No. Bayern have always been difficult to beat. Often though, the small things decide the outcome of a match.
DFB.de: Before the start of the season, you were spoken about as title rivals to Bayern München. How did you react to that?
Arnold: You have to be extremely strong to keep pace with Bayern for the whole season. I don’t think we are quite there yet.
DFB.de: Your team started fairly slowly at the beginning of the season. Do you think that has anything to do with the late departures of Kevin de Bruyne and Ivan Perisic?
Arnold: There’s a lot of talk about Kevin. But we had a fair amount of bad games even with him in the side. Of course, the departures played a role. We had a couple of good arrivals, but the team needed a bit of time to get to know each other. Furthermore, the Champions League is a very different competition to the Europa League.
DFB.de: You favoured position is attacking midfield. Because de Bruyne often occupied this position, you often slotted into defensive midfield. Was this an obstacle to your own development?
Arnold: I don’t see it like that. Kevin played very well there, and always played well with the rest of us. You have to respect the fact that he was preferred in that position.
DFB.de: Julian Draxler has been brought in to replace him. What’s your impression of the world champion so far?
Arnold: He is an excellent footballer. He also plays well with everyone, and is very calm on the ball. The more that he learns our system, the better he will be for us.
DFB.de: You have been at VfL Wolfsburg since 2009. You transferred from the youth system at Dynamo Dresden. How did you know then that the move was the right one for you at that time?
Arnold: I never thought about professional football at that time. I just wanted to keep developing. I had better chances at Wolfsburg, as Dresden were only in the Regional league and Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga. Everyone here at Wolfsburg was very helpful and supportive as soon as I arrived.
DFB.de: The desire to become a professional footballer...
Arnold: ... started to come slowly when I was about 16/17.
DFB.de: Your teammate Marcel Schäfer was apparently your mentor when you first made the step up.
Arnold: That’s true. I didn’t have a car back then so he always drove me to training and gave me advice and tips along the way. He remains someone who I can go to about anything.
DFB.de: In May 2014, you had your debut against Poland for the national team. Are you hoping for a second game soon?
Arnold: I’m not thinking about that at the moment. To be honest, I’m not working towards that right now. It is of course still my goal to play for them again. Unfortunately I didn’t get involved in the U21 European Championship games recently. It’s not the be all and end all.
