Draxler: "Giving the goalkeeper the eyes is not my thing"

The preliminary squad in 2012, the final squad in 2014, regularly in the starting XI in 2016. Add in the fact that he’s a goal scorer, assist provider and penalty converter. Julian Draxler is becoming more important for the German national team with every tournament. And he still has plenty more to give. Ahead of the EURO 2016 semi-final against France on Thursday (21:00 CEST), the 22-year-old attacking player spoke with DFB.de editor Steffen Lüdeke on his development and the game against the hosts.

DFB.de: Mr Draxler, after the game against Italy, you got Gianluigi Buffon’s shirt. However, Lukas Podolski also posed with a shirt from the Italian goalkeeper. Who has his actual shirt?

Julian Draxler: Good question. In any case, I was the first to go to Sami (Khedira, Buffon’s teammate at Juventus; editor’s note) and pleaded with him to ask Gigi...

DFB.de: You chose not to approach him directly.

Draxler: The Italians were already by the stand saying thanks and goodbye to their fans. After exiting the competition, they were obviously emotional. I didn’t want to go over to him myself because it wouldn’t have been appropriate. I thought it would be more tactful for Sami to handle it because they know each other personally. Sami then did it.

DFB.de: And then?

Draxler: He came out of the dressing room carrying two shirts - one for Poldi and one for me. It’s difficult to determine which of us has the original shirt. But that’s not important to me. At the end of the day, it’s all about the memory.

DFB.de: Your first shirt was one from Olaf Thon, which you were given on your birthday when you were a child, and your most recent is from Buffon. Who have you exchanged shirts with in between? Whose shirts have you collected during the course of your career?

Draxler: I’ve picked up several in the meanwhile. There are some which I’m exceptionally proud of. After the Champions League game against Inter Milan, I got Thiago Motta’s shirt. For me, that was a real highlight because it was my first or second Champions League game back then. In the semi-final of the Champions League against Manchester United, I added Michael Carrick’s to my collection. Which others do I have? Lampard, Drogba, Pirlo.

DFB.de: Big names.

Draxler: Yes. I only ask very, very occasionally but if I do, it’s always the top players.

DFB.de: What’s the most precious momento from your career to date?

Draxler: Definitely the shirt which I wore in the World Cup final in Rio. I got the entire team to sign it. It’s hanging up in my house. I’m very proud of that shirt.

DFB.de: That will be hard to top.

Draxler: Extremely difficult, almost impossible. But perhaps after this Sunday, I’ll have a new shirt with similar value and meaning. However, we still have a way to go to reach that point.

DFB.de: It’s also in part down to you that the team has reached this stage and can continue their EURO 2016 journey. You stepped up to take a penalty in the shootout against Italy and it was a very convincing finish. Can you describe what you were thinking on the walk up to the penalty spot?

Draxler: I made up my mind to strike the ball hard and place the ball in the corner. I knew that I have good technique. When you connect sweetly, there’s a big chance that it’ll go in. A lot of players try to give the goalkeeper the eyes but that’s not my thing, not in this situation.

DFB.de: You buried the ball in the bottom right corner. When did you decide to go that way?

Draxler: That changed five or six times during the course of the shootout. While I was watching the other penalties, I had new ideas and discarded the old ones. The final decision to go bottom right was only made shortly before it was my turn to take.

DFB.de: And after the ball went in, what were you thinking on your way back to the halfway line?

Draxler: You don’t think about a lot. Above all, I was relieved. All the tension disappeared. Afterwards I simply crossed my fingers for the others and wished my teammates good luck for their penalties as well as Manuel Neuer facing the Italians.

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DFB.de: It’s still too early to come to any conclusions. However, how would you describe EURO 2016 from your own personal perspective?

Draxler: It‘s very difficult to separate my own journey from the team’s performances and progress. We experience success and failure together. But what’s certain is that the tournament has gone very positively for myself so far. In comparison to 2014, I’ve had a lot of involvement in games and played well at times. I’m very thankful to have the trust of the manager. My personal highlight was in the game against Slovakia - a goal and an assist isn’t too bad going.

DFB.de: Prior to setting up Gomez in the game against Slovakia, you made a superb solo run. Do you act instinctively in such situations?

Draxler: Lots depends on what the defenders do. How does he react to the first body swerve? In the back of your mind, you know how he previously moved in similar situations earlier on in the game.

DFB.de: Do you not have fear about taking players on?

Draxler: No. That’s exactly what the manager demands from me. When we have a long build-up and then the wingers get into a good position, you don’t achieve anything from stopping going forwards and playing it backwards instead. I thought that the manager would want to see these 1v1 situations. It wasn’t the first time that I’d done that. These situations are my strength.

DFB.de: What gives you the confidence to take players on and enter into 1v1 situations?

Draxler: The trust and confidence of the manager as well as the backing of the team. It’s also important that the team is in a good position. It helps when you know that if you lose possession, the opposition won’t immediately be able to launch a dangerous counterattack. We are very well set up in this respect as our defenders advance forward early and align themselves with the attackers.

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DFB.de: Do you know the guidelines of DFB’s new playing concept?

Draxler: Not in detail but I know in which direction they want to develop.

DFB.de: With regards to attack, a stronger accent will be placed on dribbling and players who possess the necessary skills to be able to carve out and succeed in 1v1 situations. Training for future talents will focus more on these areas.

Draxler: I think that makes sense for several reasons. Irrespective of the fact that it helps the team, it is also cool for spectators when you have players on the pitch who can leave one or two opposition players trailing in their wake. Such situations are also highlights for the fans.

DFB.de: You can only be successful when you strike the right balance though and both aspects previously discussed function in the team. If you have a side with eleven players who constantly like to dribble with the ball, you wouldn’t make much progress.

Draxler: Absolutely. The mixture in the national team is just right. When I look at a player like Toni Kroos, it’s crazy how he organises the game and dictates the tempo. Just take a look at the passes he plays! Toni plays 500 passes - and out of those, 495 reach a teammate. We have some players who are outstanding in this respect. But the other element is equally necessary in so far as there would be no harm in devoting significant attention to wingers being able to skip past their opponents.

DFB.de: After your impressive display against Slovakia, many had thought that you’d also start against Italy. How surprised were you when the manager told you that you’d be on the bench?

Draxler: You obviously want to take and carry on momentum from the previous game; you have high ambitions. So you can’t implement that in the first instance when you’re a substitute. But I could also understand the manager’s thinking, no question.

DFB.de: So you weren’t annoyed then?

Draxler: Not at all. For me, it also made sense. When we play with five at the back against Italy, then an attacking player loses their place. We can’t play with twelve men. I accepted his decision but I also said to him at the same time that I was fully ready and there if something wasn’t going to plan in the game. I also said that he didn’t need to have any worries about me losing my motivation as a result of this decision. The bottom line is that we beat Italy and made it through to the semi-final - the manager got everything right.

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DFB.de: Did you hear what Joachim Löw said about you in the press conference on Monday?

Draxler: No.

DFB.de: Here’s a direct quote: "I expect to see more good things from him in the rest of the tournament. It will be very, very important for the national team in the years to come."

Draxler: That pleases me. It’s a real honour for me when the manager makes a comment like that. And it makes me proud. I’ve put lots in and worked hard to get to the position where I can play an important role in the national team. But I’m not that old, just 22 and have many more years ahead of me. I have a real desire to become even better and develop further. I’ve still not reached my peak.

DFB.de: The game against France is on Thursday. Semi-final against the hosts - it’s the same situation as at the 2014 World Cup. Do you agree that the semi-final against Brazil was for you personally the greatest moment during the World Cup?

Draxler: Only partly. Perhaps, the 7-1 victory was perhaps the game of the century for Germany and I came on in place of Sami Khedira during the match. That was obviously a personal highlight. However, when you ask the players who featured in almost all of the games back then, they’ll all say that there is nothing bigger or greater than triumphing in a World Cup final. But obviously the semi-final was terrific, fantastic. It was a very special and unique story.

DFB.de: How impressed were you back then with the setting in Belo Horizonte? The anthems, the yellow wall in the stadium.

Draxler: That was amazing. We already thought that we needed to be at the top of our game to remain in the competition. Brazil put us under a lot of pressure in the opening ten minutes but then we played in a frenzy - that was even more amazing, somewhat unbelievable.

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DFB.de: Do you think that a repeat performance and result would be possible on Thursday?

Draxler: No. Such a high margin of victory in a World Cup or European Championship won’t happen again anytime soon, especially not when two big nations face each other. I think that it’ll be a very closely-fought contest with France, in which the small details will probably prove decisive.

DFB.de: What do you make of the French team?

Draxler: I don’t think that we’ve seen everything they have to offer yet at the European Championship. They deserve to be in the semi-final and haven’t disappointed so far. But they still have even more potential. They boast excellent individual players and are also very tight as a team. For us, it’ll be a matter of preventing them from playing their game and dictating events ourselves.

DFB.de: Mats Hummels is suspended, Mario Gomez and Sami Khedira are injured. Bastian Schweinsteiger is also not 100%. Are you worried that these absentees will mean that the German game could change?

Draxler: Our playing idea will remain the same therefore, the fact that players are missing isn’t relevant. But when we’re talking about these four players, we’re talking about world class individuals. Also very experienced players, who are used to being in such pressured situations. But our squad is full of quality players. Regardless of who players, everyone is ready. I’m certain that as a team we’ll manage without the missing players.