Marco Reus: "We're playing well"

Marco Reus has grabbed a brace in each of his last two Bundesliga appearances and after yesterday’s victory in Bremen he spoke to DFB.de about the game, next week’s derby against Schalke and the title race.

Question: Mr. Reus, you scored twice yesterday. Was it fun out there?

Marco Reus: On the whole I’d say it was, but the first half was tough. Werder sat back and made it tough for us. After the break we controlled the game a bit more and they had to come out to try and get something from the game. This meant gaps opened up and we had more chances. We deserved the win.

Question: You’ve been spoken about a lot in the press recently. Things hadn’t been going your way but now you’re scoring again. Is there a reason for this?

Reus: I don’t know. These things happen in football. I’ve always believed in myself and worked hard, regardless of how things are going on the pitch. I’m delighted to have helped the team beat Bremen.

Question: Do you think that was the best performance of the season?

Reus: I wouldn’t say so. Journalists often focus merely on the goals. The most important thing from my perspective is that I help the team pick up positive results, which is what is happening at the moment.

Question: So you’re saying goals aren’t important to you?

Reus: Not exactly. It’s always great to score, especially when you’re an attacking player. I’m happy with how I played against Werder but I don’t think it was my best performance of the campaign to date.

Question: The fans are already thinking about next week’s game against Schalke 04...

Reus: We play FC Qäbälä in the Europa League before that though. Regardless of what the supporters are thinking about, our focus is Thursday’s match. We’re not in the Europa League to make up the numbers, we want to win in Azerbaijan. We’ll only start thinking about Schalke on Friday.

Question: Table toppers Bayern München drew with Frankfurt on Friday and dropped points for the first time this season. What are your thoughts on the importance of that result?

Reus: It was a nice early Christmas present from them! However, in all seriousness, the game showed just how difficult it can be to play teams who sit back. You have to work hard to find the gaps. Bayern struggled to do that on Friday, thankfully we fared a bit better in Bremen yesterday.

Question: Is the title race back on?

Reus: I wouldn’t say so – Bayern are still consistently picking up points. We’re focussed mainly on ourselves though. We’re playing well at the minute and can’t afford to get too concerned with how they’re doing.

Question: Yesterday’s win helped you extend your advantage over third place. Do you have a comfortable position yet?

Reus: I don’t think that it’s comfortable. The league is quite even and everyone is taking points off each other, so things can change very quickly. We’re doing well at the minute, we’re focussed and the head coach is excellent – we are confident.

Source: DFB.de.