The night VfL Wolfsburg shocked the whole of Europe. The underdogs surprised Spanish giants Real Madrid with a stunning 2-0 win in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal. World Cup winner Julian Draxler played a big part in the win, starting the move for the second goal. The 22-year-old has been speaking to DFB.de about the win.
Question: Mr Draxler, how does it feel after such a sensational win?
Julian Draxler: We’re enjoying the moment and are very proud of ourselves. The whole club is proud that we played so well against Real Madrid. But we’re not euphoric or anything like that. Ultimately, we still have a lot of work to do in the away leg.
Question: You have experienced a lot in your still young career. Where does this game rank?
Draxler: It’s a huge moment for me. If I’m correctly informed, that was my 30th Champions League match. To celebrate it against Real Madrid with a 2-0 win is obviously something special that I will never forget. But as I already said, we’re not getting carried away. We know that it will be a completely different game for us at the Santiago Bernabeu. We can’t make the mistake of sitting back. If we drop our concentration levels by just a few percent, we will have a very rude awakening in Madrid.
Question: Were Real Madrid simply unable to create much in attack, or was the VfL defence just too tight to let anything through?
Draxler: Both. Real definitely didn’t play to their limit today. But you also need to pay huge compliments to our defence and holding midfielders. How they held off such fantastic attackers in incredible. That also had an impact on the Madrid player’s body language.
Question: Could that tactic work in the return leg?
The night VfL Wolfsburg shocked the whole of Europe. The underdogs surprised Spanish giants Real Madrid with a stunning 2-0 win in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal. World Cup winner Julian Draxler played a big part in the win, starting the move for the second goal. The 22-year-old has been speaking to DFB.de about the win.
Question: Mr Draxler, how does it feel after such a sensational win?
Julian Draxler: We’re enjoying the moment and are very proud of ourselves. The whole club is proud that we played so well against Real Madrid. But we’re not euphoric or anything like that. Ultimately, we still have a lot of work to do in the away leg.
Question: You have experienced a lot in your still young career. Where does this game rank?
Draxler: It’s a huge moment for me. If I’m correctly informed, that was my 30th Champions League match. To celebrate it against Real Madrid with a 2-0 win is obviously something special that I will never forget. But as I already said, we’re not getting carried away. We know that it will be a completely different game for us at the Santiago Bernabeu. We can’t make the mistake of sitting back. If we drop our concentration levels by just a few percent, we will have a very rude awakening in Madrid.
Question: Were Real Madrid simply unable to create much in attack, or was the VfL defence just too tight to let anything through?
Draxler: Both. Real definitely didn’t play to their limit today. But you also need to pay huge compliments to our defence and holding midfielders. How they held off such fantastic attackers in incredible. That also had an impact on the Madrid player’s body language.
Question: Could that tactic work in the return leg?
Draxler: Yes, of course. We played well, frustrated Real, stood strong at the back and didn’t allow them to develop their rhythm. Up front we were always dangerous and could have even done better with one or two counter opportunities. I don’t want to say it was the perfect game from us, but we played very close to our performance limit. We’re excited to see what Real have in their locker in the return leg, as now they really have to come at us.
Question:Which means...
Draxler:They will definitely come at us like a storm. With their own fans behind them, Real will throw everything forward. We have to be brave, keep hold of the ball and find the games. If we can score an away goal, it gets pretty tough for them.
Question:How good are your chances of making the semi-finals, if you had to put a percentage on it?
Draxler:I don’t know. Real are always capable of turning the game around. We have giving ourselves a good chance, but I’m by no means says that we already have one foot in the semi-finals.
Question:Before the next match against Real Madrid, you play FSV Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga on Saturday. How difficult will it be to switch off from the Champions League?
Draxler: That’s the hardest thing in football. After such a great evening, we have to get back to normal. Especially when we’re not on such a good run in the league, it’s even harder to pull ourselves out. But every match counts. We need to approach the Mainz game just as we did against Madrid. But obviously you cannot ignore the fact that for a game against Real Madrid, everyone is motivated to the max.
Question:Will your good friend and former teammate Raúl, who is a Real Madrid legend, wish you good luck?
Draxler:I think so. We spoke to one another briefly before the game. He will probably be half smiling, half crying after the result. I hope that by the end of the return leg he is only crying!(laughs)
