Reus: “The belief has always been there”

The last player out was the captain. Following the historic 8-4 win over Legia Warsaw in the Champions League, Marco Reus was asked to conduct a drugs test, along with World Champion Erik Durm. Before that, Reus was able to celebrate his comeback to action after 185 days on the sidelines. With goals in the 32nd, 52 and 90th minutes, the Germany international played a huge part in Dortmund’s defence of their top spot in group F.

More than two hours after the final whistle, Reus faced the media at quarter to one in the morning. In an interview with DFB.de, the 27-year-old spoke about his dream comeback, his state of mind and his personal form.

Question: Marco Reus, following nearly 200 days out injured, is this win and a hat-trick reward for the work that you have put in towards your comeback?

Marco Reus: Even if I hadn't have scored, I would have still been happy to make my comeback. To get on the scoresheet and then to be able to help the team win was twice and three-times as good.

Question: What was the feeling really like to be back on the pitch after this long absence?

Reus: It is always something special, especially when you are out for so long. I was really looking forward this moment and worked really hard towards it. From then on, it just felt great to get the win.

Question: There were BVB goals already scored before you were on the scoresheet in the 32nd minute. As the goals were flying in, were you thinking: Lads, let me get on the scoresheet?

Reus: Not exactly. I was well involved in the game. At the end of the day, it really doesn’t matter who scores. The most important thing is that the team wins.

Question: Was this exactly the right opposition to make your comeback against?

Reus: No. Defensively we weren’t very good as a team. Conceding four goals at home is definitely too many. We will certainly have to talk about that. I would have loved to have played against Bayern at the weekend, though. I won’t be worrying about the fact that it was against Legia Warsaw though.

Question: Did the head coach agree with you beforehand that you would play the 90 minutes? Did you indicate to him in advance, that you had enough strength and energy?

Reus: I trained a lot beforehand and actually picked up a few knocks in the process! laughs But no, I think when you’re out for half a year, it gets difficult from the 70th minute on. But I felt good and paced myself well.

Question: Your record of injuries hasn’t been that straightforward. How difficult was it to remain patient in order to work your way back?

Reus: For me there isn’t much use in talking about the past because I can’t change it. I can only affect the here and now and try to help the team out. It wasn’t too difficult on my body and I’m just delighted to be back in the action.

Question: After such a long time out, can the mind trust the body again? Do you go into games with confidence?

Reus: The belief has been there from the start. If that confidence wasn’t there, I would not be playing.

Question: A draw against Real Madrid in your final Champions League group game will be enough to secure top spot. How optimistic are you of getting a result in that game?

Reus: We have two difficult games against Frankfurt and Mönchengladbach before then. But of course, we are looking forward to the game against Real Madrid because, as you said, it is basically a final to decide the group winners. We always want to win and will want to definitely defend lot better than we did against Legia Warsaw.

Question: How solid do you feel going into the next few games?

Reus: I feel 100% solid, but getting back to 100% full fitness will take a little bit more time. I think it’s pretty clear that I will need a few more games. We have six games left until the winter break and we will see how many of those I can take part in. We have a really difficult schedule ahead of us, against some really strong opposition, so we will have to be consistent in the way we play and win of course.

Question: After your hat-trick in the 8-4 win, you took the match ball as a souvenir. Will that be put in a special place?

Reus: Yes. I need to get all the boys to sign it first and then it will go in a special place.

Question: After such an enthralling game, is it easy to sleep or switch off? Or is it a case of being exhausted and falling sleep immediately?

Reus: I’m pretty exhausted now. I always find it difficult to fall asleep quickly after an evening game, but I think I will be able to find a few quiet moments.