From one Borussia to the other – and a European Championship to be played in between. One of the key figures of the past season in Germany, Marco Reus's transfer from Mönchengladbach to Dortmund was among the most-discussed issues of the 2011/2012 season. At this year's EUROS, however, the 22-year-old has had to come to terms with an unusual position: that of sitting on the bench.
Here's what Reus told DFB.de writer Steffen Lüdeke about his role and his lesser known traits.
team.dfb.de: Marco, your Twitter account nickname is "woodyinho" – could this be hinting at a relation to a certain Woody Woodpecker?
Marco Reus: Sure! At Gladbach we were all given nicknames, and from my haircut to getting called Woody was not much of a stretch. And before long, Woody became Woodyinho.
team.dfb.de: Other than haircut, are there any other similarities between bird and man? Wikipedia describes the animated feature character as funny, crazy, with a special knack of getting on peoples' nerves...
Reus: He's also supposed to be real fast (laughs). Well, that sounds okay to me.
team.dfb.de: So you wouldn't object to the following description: Marco Reus, the crazy little rascal?
Reus: Yes, sort of. I'm a positive type of person with a frank and friendly attitude. I like to chill and take things easy, but at the same time I know full well just when flippancy is out of order, times when I turn very quiet and meditative.
team.dfb.de: On your website, you say that if you could travel into the future, you'd choose the year 2020. If you could travel back in time, where would you go?
Reus: To the time just after the Second World War. It must have been so exciting to see how the country was re-built. I'm quite a history buff, German history in particular. I've read quite a number of books about wartime and post-war Germany, and in our family we often talked about that era.
team.dfb.de: Generally speaking, you come across as a cheerful guy. What would make you lose your cool?
Reus: Look, you only live once. So I always try to focus on the positive things and not attach too much importance to whatever drags you down. Obviously, I have my sad moments, and losing matches can make me really grumpy, but you're right – in principle, I try to maintain an upbeat outlook on life.
team.dfb.de: And everything is fine as long as you've got a ball at your feet…
Reus: Yes, it's always been like this. I usually carry a ball with me, even when I was a little boy there was some kind of magnetism between footballs and me.
team.dfb.de: Balls or, in fact, anything round-shaped. Is it true you used apples and oranges for balls when you were small?
Reus: Yes, I have to plead guilty on that count. My mother didn't like it one bit, obviously.
team.dfb.de: She then took the very sensible decision to register you with local club Post SV Dortmund. Describing those days, you wrote: "Playing football all day with my friends – it was fantastic!" That, basically, is what you're doing today, isn't it?
Reus: I am fortunate that I get on really well with my team-mates. But even outside professional football, I sometimes take time out for a little kick-about with my friends. It's just that there aren't so many opportunities for that anymore. But it's just as much fun as in the old days. It's very important for me to not lose contact with my old friends who knew me when I wasn't "famous". They know what makes me tick, they understand my sense of humour, and they are the people I can always count on. These friendships mean a lot to me.
team.dfb.de: In January, you said it would be a dream come true for you to be at the EUROS. Well – how does it feel now that you're here?
Reus: This being my first major tournament, it feels just wonderful – a great experience. Having said that, I'm sad that I haven't had any chance to play yet…
team.dfb.de: …despite the fact that you, perhaps more than anybody else, had received many a round of applause, with football magazine Kicker and your Bundesliga team-mates voting you Player of the Season.
Reus: Yes, I think I improved a lot over last year. And I still hope to be able to make a difference to our team at this tournament. This European Championship has only just begun, though, and if I get my chance, I want to be up to the task. So I give everything I've got in training and try to offer myself for a place in the starting line-up.
team.dfb.de: In the last three years, you featured in not fewer than 97 matches for Mönchengladbach, that's almost the maximum number of games possible, so that the role of sub must be entirely new to you.
Reus: Correct, but it's not one I'm particularly good at playing, on the contrary. It's brutally hard for me not to be out on the pitch. You can say that "being needed" is my default setting, and if I'm on the bench, I don't really know what to do! I'm just not used to it.
team.dfb.de: So how have you dealt with the situation so far?
Reus: I watch the games, trying to prepare myself and be ready if and when I come on. I have made it my mission to come to terms with this state of affairs. I'll use it to grow, to mature, to come out of it a stronger player and pull out all the stops in training.
team.dfb.de: But you won't complain?
Reus: Football is a team sport. There is just no right for anybody to go into a sulk just because they don't get to play. But there are no such people here. After all, I'm not the only one without any minutes so far. We're all rowing in the same direction. And don't forget – it's not in my nature to mope and moan. I look ahead and hope that my chance will come.
team.dfb.de: Prior to the tournament, head coach Joachim Löw indicated that he could actually imagine you in new role, playing up front.
Reus: Well, I'm a versatile player and I know I could play in many positions. This idea didn't really surprise me too much; at Mönchengladbach, I often I teamed up with Mike Hanke and we always were quite a good attacking strike force.
team.dfb.de: All the more amazing, therefore, to see you between the posts at some training sessions… Any reason for Manuel Neuer to worry?
Reus: Not at all! (laughs), all our goalies are very strong, and Manuel is a world-class keeper. It's just that I quite like playing in goal, an interesting and pretty difficult position. I'm not altogether bad in goal, but there's no doubt that field player suits me better.
team.dfb.de: Obviously, you're hoping to be able to show that on Sunday against Denmark.
Reus: I'd very happy! We're not through yet – Denmark beat the Netherlands 1-0, and then lost to Portugal 2-3. You underestimate the Danes at your peril. If we want to win, we've got to give 100 percent.
team.dfb.de: Are you watching a lot of football at this tournament? And what is your impression so far, quality-wise?
Reus: This is football at a very high level, totally different from what I'm used to from the Bundesliga or, for that matter, the Europa League or the Champions League. The major tournament kind of football is different, that's what the other players have told me. They said that games are somehow "strange". And they're right!
team.dfb.de: In how far?
Reus: Well, the main difference is that in the Bundesliga, opponents attack you absolutely everywhere, no matter where you receive the ball. They're coming at you at once. That's not the case here. Defenders wait much longer before they tackle attackers, but if they do, they really mean it! I'm really curious to see how that feels when I'm on the pitch myself.
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From one Borussia to the other – and a European Championship to be played in between. One of the key figures of the past season in Germany, Marco Reus's transfer from Mönchengladbach to Dortmund was among the most-discussed issues of the 2011/2012 season. At this year's EUROS, however, the 22-year-old has had to come to terms with an unusual position: that of sitting on the bench.
Here's what Reus told DFB.de writer Steffen Lüdeke about his role and his lesser known traits.
team.dfb.de: Marco, your Twitter account nickname is "woodyinho" – could this be hinting at a relation to a certain Woody Woodpecker?
Marco Reus: Sure! At Gladbach we were all given nicknames, and from my haircut to getting called Woody was not much of a stretch. And before long, Woody became Woodyinho.
team.dfb.de: Other than haircut, are there any other similarities between bird and man? Wikipedia describes the animated feature character as funny, crazy, with a special knack of getting on peoples' nerves...
Reus: He's also supposed to be real fast (laughs). Well, that sounds okay to me.
team.dfb.de: So you wouldn't object to the following description: Marco Reus, the crazy little rascal?
Reus: Yes, sort of. I'm a positive type of person with a frank and friendly attitude. I like to chill and take things easy, but at the same time I know full well just when flippancy is out of order, times when I turn very quiet and meditative.
team.dfb.de: On your website, you say that if you could travel into the future, you'd choose the year 2020. If you could travel back in time, where would you go?
Reus: To the time just after the Second World War. It must have been so exciting to see how the country was re-built. I'm quite a history buff, German history in particular. I've read quite a number of books about wartime and post-war Germany, and in our family we often talked about that era.
team.dfb.de: Generally speaking, you come across as a cheerful guy. What would make you lose your cool?
Reus: Look, you only live once. So I always try to focus on the positive things and not attach too much importance to whatever drags you down. Obviously, I have my sad moments, and losing matches can make me really grumpy, but you're right – in principle, I try to maintain an upbeat outlook on life.
team.dfb.de: And everything is fine as long as you've got a ball at your feet…
Reus: Yes, it's always been like this. I usually carry a ball with me, even when I was a little boy there was some kind of magnetism between footballs and me.
team.dfb.de: Balls or, in fact, anything round-shaped. Is it true you used apples and oranges for balls when you were small?
Reus: Yes, I have to plead guilty on that count. My mother didn't like it one bit, obviously.
team.dfb.de: She then took the very sensible decision to register you with local club Post SV Dortmund. Describing those days, you wrote: "Playing football all day with my friends – it was fantastic!" That, basically, is what you're doing today, isn't it?
Reus: I am fortunate that I get on really well with my team-mates. But even outside professional football, I sometimes take time out for a little kick-about with my friends. It's just that there aren't so many opportunities for that anymore. But it's just as much fun as in the old days. It's very important for me to not lose contact with my old friends who knew me when I wasn't "famous". They know what makes me tick, they understand my sense of humour, and they are the people I can always count on. These friendships mean a lot to me.
team.dfb.de: In January, you said it would be a dream come true for you to be at the EUROS. Well – how does it feel now that you're here?
Reus: This being my first major tournament, it feels just wonderful – a great experience. Having said that, I'm sad that I haven't had any chance to play yet…
team.dfb.de: …despite the fact that you, perhaps more than anybody else, had received many a round of applause, with football magazine Kicker and your Bundesliga team-mates voting you Player of the Season.
Reus: Yes, I think I improved a lot over last year. And I still hope to be able to make a difference to our team at this tournament. This European Championship has only just begun, though, and if I get my chance, I want to be up to the task. So I give everything I've got in training and try to offer myself for a place in the starting line-up.
team.dfb.de: In the last three years, you featured in not fewer than 97 matches for Mönchengladbach, that's almost the maximum number of games possible, so that the role of sub must be entirely new to you.
Reus: Correct, but it's not one I'm particularly good at playing, on the contrary. It's brutally hard for me not to be out on the pitch. You can say that "being needed" is my default setting, and if I'm on the bench, I don't really know what to do! I'm just not used to it.
team.dfb.de: So how have you dealt with the situation so far?
Reus: I watch the games, trying to prepare myself and be ready if and when I come on. I have made it my mission to come to terms with this state of affairs. I'll use it to grow, to mature, to come out of it a stronger player and pull out all the stops in training.
team.dfb.de: But you won't complain?
Reus: Football is a team sport. There is just no right for anybody to go into a sulk just because they don't get to play. But there are no such people here. After all, I'm not the only one without any minutes so far. We're all rowing in the same direction. And don't forget – it's not in my nature to mope and moan. I look ahead and hope that my chance will come.
team.dfb.de: Prior to the tournament, head coach Joachim Löw indicated that he could actually imagine you in new role, playing up front.
[bild2]
Reus: Well, I'm a versatile player and I know I could play in many positions. This idea didn't really surprise me too much; at Mönchengladbach, I often I teamed up with Mike Hanke and we always were quite a good attacking strike force.
team.dfb.de: All the more amazing, therefore, to see you between the posts at some training sessions… Any reason for Manuel Neuer to worry?
Reus: Not at all! (laughs), all our goalies are very strong, and Manuel is a world-class keeper. It's just that I quite like playing in goal, an interesting and pretty difficult position. I'm not altogether bad in goal, but there's no doubt that field player suits me better.
team.dfb.de: Obviously, you're hoping to be able to show that on Sunday against Denmark.
Reus: I'd very happy! We're not through yet – Denmark beat the Netherlands 1-0, and then lost to Portugal 2-3. You underestimate the Danes at your peril. If we want to win, we've got to give 100 percent.
team.dfb.de: Are you watching a lot of football at this tournament? And what is your impression so far, quality-wise?
Reus: This is football at a very high level, totally different from what I'm used to from the Bundesliga or, for that matter, the Europa League or the Champions League. The major tournament kind of football is different, that's what the other players have told me. They said that games are somehow "strange". And they're right!
team.dfb.de: In how far?
Reus: Well, the main difference is that in the Bundesliga, opponents attack you absolutely everywhere, no matter where you receive the ball. They're coming at you at once. That's not the case here. Defenders wait much longer before they tackle attackers, but if they do, they really mean it! I'm really curious to see how that feels when I'm on the pitch myself.
