A brace and an assist - Leroy Sané celebrated a fantastic U21 starting debut during Germany's 4-0 victory over Finland on Friday in Essen's Hafenstraße Stadium. Over the course of the entire match, Schalke's youngster put on a fine attacking display in Horst Hrubesch's team. His pace, his dribbling skill and joy of playing – all of these things make Sané so valuable to the U21 national side.
The 19-year-old will look to keep his form going, with Germany's U21s taking on the Faroe Islands in Torshavn on Tuesday (18:30 CEST) in their next qualifying game. Sané sat down with DFB.de in an interview to discuss the game with Finland, his great form and the newly-formed U21 team.
DFB.de: Leroy Sané, did your starting debut in Germany's U21 side go as you had planned or perhaps even dreamed?
Leroy Sané: More like I dreamed. It's always great to score a goal on your starting debut. Showing a good performance always leaves a good impression, with the coach as well.
DFB.de: Was the 4-0 scoreline with Finland a deserved result, or would you say that you deserved an even bigger victory?
Sané: We definitely missed some chances out there, especially in the first half. Towards the end of the match we also had a few chances that we could've taken advantage of better. But overall we put in a very, very good performance.
DFB.de: Do you agree that the team is producing football that's very enjoyable and attractive to watch?
Sané: Yes, definitely. The team is really up for it, which we particularly displayed in the first half. In the second half we weren’t as effective going forward, but still managed to play well.
A brace and an assist - Leroy Sané celebrated a fantastic U21 starting debut during Germany's 4-0 victory over Finland on Friday in Essen's Hafenstraße Stadium. Over the course of the entire match, Schalke's youngster put on a fine attacking display in Horst Hrubesch's team. His pace, his dribbling skill and joy of playing – all of these things make Sané so valuable to the U21 national side.
The 19-year-old will look to keep his form going, with Germany's U21s taking on the Faroe Islands in Torshavn on Tuesday (18:30 CEST) in their next qualifying game. Sané sat down with DFB.de in an interview to discuss the game with Finland, his great form and the newly-formed U21 team.
DFB.de: Leroy Sané, did your starting debut in Germany's U21 side go as you had planned or perhaps even dreamed?
Leroy Sané: More like I dreamed. It's always great to score a goal on your starting debut. Showing a good performance always leaves a good impression, with the coach as well.
DFB.de: Was the 4-0 scoreline with Finland a deserved result, or would you say that you deserved an even bigger victory?
Sané: We definitely missed some chances out there, especially in the first half. Towards the end of the match we also had a few chances that we could've taken advantage of better. But overall we put in a very, very good performance.
DFB.de: Do you agree that the team is producing football that's very enjoyable and attractive to watch?
Sané: Yes, definitely. The team is really up for it, which we particularly displayed in the first half. In the second half we weren’t as effective going forward, but still managed to play well.
DFB.de: You've also shown some good form at FC Schalke 04 of late. Does good form at club level give you confidence to play well in the national team?
Sané: If things are going well for you at your club, you will definitely bring a certain level of confidence to the national team. Perhaps it makes things a bit easier then. But apart from that, the processes are quite similar.
DFB.de: Schalke currently have three players in Germany's U21 team. Does that also make it easier for you, to have your club team mates around you with the national team?
Sané: Of course. I'm happy that we have three Schalke players currently active for Germany's U21 side. I get along great with both of them [Leon Goretzka and Max Meyer].
DFB.de: How would you rate the bond within the newly-formed U21 team?
Sané: I would say that we've already established a very, very strong bond within the team. We get along great both on and off the pitch. Obviously there are still things that we can improve on and we definitely will improve on them given time. But overall the team is already getting along great.
DFB.de: What do you expect from the game against the Faroe Islands on Tuesday?
Sané: I think that the Faroe Islands will play even more defensively than Finland did. Obviously that makes it a bit tougher for us and we have to take advantage of the first chance that we create. We will also have to watch out for counter attacks. But I'm very confident that we will perform well again as a team.
