Höwedes: Derbys are totally different fixtures. It doesn’t matter who goes into the game in good form. It’s all about what happens on the day – the team that has the best mentality through the match will do well. It’s all about winning tackles, playing well and taking your chances. It’s also important to remain calm when necessary. The form book goes out of the window ahead of games like this.
Question: You also face FC Bayern and Leverkusen in the next few weeks...
Höwedes: Obviously these games will be difficult. They are some of the biggest clubs in the division. If we give it our all and play to our strengths we have a chance to take something from them though. Everything depends on us. We can’t go into the games with a negative mentality or we’ll struggle. We will work hard and give it our all in the hope of picking up points.
Question: Are you hoping the situation surrounding the sporting director is sorted quickly, or does it not really impact the players?
Höwedes: We don’t speak about it and as players we don’t have a lot of sway on the matter anyway. Obviously, I hope that it gets sorted soon and so does the head coach but there’s not a lot we can do about the situation.
Source: DFB.de.
Schalke skipper Benedikt Höwedes picked up an arm injury during the closing stages of yesterday’s 1-1 draw with Ingolstadt but still completed the game. After the final whistle, the 27-year-old spoke to DFB.de about the result and the upcoming challenges.
Question: Your arm is bandaged. What happened, Mr. Höwedes?
Benedikt Höwedes: After a clash with an opponent I landed on my hand. I think it’s broken – it looks that way and the team doctor agrees with me, but I’ll know more once I’ve been to the hospital.
Question: If it is broken, do you still hope to be able to play?
Höwedes: I would like to wear a splint and take it from there. I’ll be able to say a bit more once I’ve trained a few times though.
Question: Back to the game. Why do you think FCI were so difficult to break down?
Höwedes: We weren’t great in the first half – something was lacking out there from our perspective and that obviously made things harder for us. They then netted before the break, in lucky fashion. The head coach found the right words at the break and we improved in the second half – we were more motivated, shifted the ball better and created more chances. Ingolstadt didn’t really have a shot in the second period. We equalised and then pushed for a winner and considering the pressure we put them under, it’s a shame we didn’t find one.
Question: The fans are already starting to look ahead to next weekend’s game against Dortmund. What are your thoughts ahead of the game?
Höwedes: Derbys are totally different fixtures. It doesn’t matter who goes into the game in good form. It’s all about what happens on the day – the team that has the best mentality through the match will do well. It’s all about winning tackles, playing well and taking your chances. It’s also important to remain calm when necessary. The form book goes out of the window ahead of games like this.
Question: You also face FC Bayern and Leverkusen in the next few weeks...
Höwedes: Obviously these games will be difficult. They are some of the biggest clubs in the division. If we give it our all and play to our strengths we have a chance to take something from them though. Everything depends on us. We can’t go into the games with a negative mentality or we’ll struggle. We will work hard and give it our all in the hope of picking up points.
Question: Are you hoping the situation surrounding the sporting director is sorted quickly, or does it not really impact the players?
Höwedes: We don’t speak about it and as players we don’t have a lot of sway on the matter anyway. Obviously, I hope that it gets sorted soon and so does the head coach but there’s not a lot we can do about the situation.
Source: DFB.de.
