Claudio Pizarro knows how to win the DFB Cup: five times winner with Bayern München - his winning goal against Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2006 final never forgotten - and twice with Werder Bremen. The Peruvian would very much like to lift the trophy in the Olympiastadion one last time. Between him and the final, stand no other than his former club Bayern München, whom he and his Green White teammates will take on in the Allianz Arena tonight at 20:30 CEST. How he intends to go about overcoming this daunting obstacle on Werder’s road to Berlin, the 37-year-old reveals to us in an exclusive interview on DFB.de.
Question: Mr. Pizarro, in this year’s semi-final you are coming up against your old club Bayern München. What are your thoughts as you approach this tie?
Claudio Pizarro: It’s a special occasion for me to play in the Allianz Arena again against my former teammates. Obviously it will be difficult, but we want to get to the final, we want to go to Berlin. I hope we put on a good show in Munich and win the game. The win over Wolfsburg has done us a lot of good.
Question: In the DFB Cup you’re fighting for a place in the final, in the Bundesliga you’re fighting against relegation. How are you coping with these two challenges?
Pizarro: We just have to take it one step at a time. Right now we are fully focused on the cup game, for which we need to show all our strengths, then we will turn our full attention back to the Bundesliga.
Question: As soon as three days later on the Friday you travel to Hamburg for the Northern derby. That’s a true relegation battle. Will the cup game not almost be detrimental?
Pizarro: I’m used to things like that. If we think about it too much, and our heads are already in Hamburg, then we won’t put in a good performance in Munich. We need all our might and concentration for the semi-final. When that’s over, then we can think about Hamburger SV.
Question: Is it not difficult to physically cope with such a week?
Pizarro: Of course it’s not easy, but as I said: we can only afford to think about Bayern now.
Question: Will you get in touch with your former Bayern München teammates ahead of the game?
Pizarro: Possibly. We’re always in contact
Question: In the Bundesliga, Werder lost 5-0 in Munich, you didn’t feature in this game. But your team was heavily criticised for having practically gifted the game away. How do you want to start the game this time?
Pizarro: The Bundesliga game is in the past. Now a completely new game awaits us, and I think the win over Wolfsburg this weekend did us a lot of good. We’re coming to Munich in full swing. So we hope to turn this momentum into a good performance.
Question: What did the win against Wolfsburg do with the team?
Pizarro: We had been speaking all week about how we need points. We are in a difficult situation and really needed to finally win at home again. We managed to do this with a good performance. The win was important for us, for the fans and for the whole of Bremen.
Question: How important was the win for your manager Viktor Skripnik?
Pizarro: We all needed the win - he too. I think he is a little more relaxed now.
Question: The papers were saying that the players expressed their support for the manager.
Pizarro: The team doesn’t make the decision. We only said that we would like to continue working and improving with him. The final decision was made elsewhere.
Question: After the defeat against FC Augsburg, the situation intensified, then there was the show of solidarity from the fans. How did you take all of that?
Pizarro: It wasn’t easy. They were difficult moments. But we focused on the Wolfsburg game properly. I think everything is better now.
Question: How did you experience the atmosphere surrounding the game?
Pizarro: The support, as it has been all season, was simply superb. I’ve played here for many years now, but the atmosphere on Saturday was something else. I think it gave the team strength. The fans being happy obviously made the win even sweeter.
Question: When the team bus arrived before the game, there were countless Werder fans waiting to greet you.
Pizarro: Yes, that was extremely important for our team spirit. It definitely helped us. We all ran for one another and fought hard until the very end.
Question: You scored your 102nd goal for Werder and are now all-time top goalscorer at the club. What does that mean to you?
Pizarro: Das ist etwas Besonderes für mich. Ich bin froh, dass ich das geschafft habe. Aber ich will noch mehr Tore schießen.
It’s very special for me. I am very happy to have achieved this milestone, but I want to score more goals.
Question: Do you know how many goals you’ve scored in the DFB Cup?
Pizarro: No.
Question: 30. The next best in the all-time list is Hannes Löhr with 32 goals - he is in second place. Would you like to catch him up?
Pizarro: I wasn’t thinking about that. But as you mention it: it would be nice to catch him up.
Question: You said earlier that you would like to reach the final. Are you aware that the DFB-Cup final is between the two relegation playoff legs?
Pizarro: That’s not ideal for us. That would be difficult. We would just have to recuperate well between the games.
Question: It sounds like you’re expecting to be in the relegation playoff.
Pizarro: It’s obviously a possibility. But we have four more teams to play who are all fighting against relegation as well. That’s a positive for us. It’s all in our hands.
Question: Where do you always get your optimism from?
Pizarro: I’ve always been like that. It’s always worked well for me. Why should I change?
created by mmc/dw
Claudio Pizarro knows how to win the DFB Cup: five times winner with Bayern München - his winning goal against Eintracht Frankfurt in the 2006 final never forgotten - and twice with Werder Bremen. The Peruvian would very much like to lift the trophy in the Olympiastadion one last time. Between him and the final, stand no other than his former club Bayern München, whom he and his Green White teammates will take on in the Allianz Arena tonight at 20:30 CEST. How he intends to go about overcoming this daunting obstacle on Werder’s road to Berlin, the 37-year-old reveals to us in an exclusive interview on DFB.de.
Question: Mr. Pizarro, in this year’s semi-final you are coming up against your old club Bayern München. What are your thoughts as you approach this tie?
Claudio Pizarro: It’s a special occasion for me to play in the Allianz Arena again against my former teammates. Obviously it will be difficult, but we want to get to the final, we want to go to Berlin. I hope we put on a good show in Munich and win the game. The win over Wolfsburg has done us a lot of good.
Question: In the DFB Cup you’re fighting for a place in the final, in the Bundesliga you’re fighting against relegation. How are you coping with these two challenges?
Pizarro: We just have to take it one step at a time. Right now we are fully focused on the cup game, for which we need to show all our strengths, then we will turn our full attention back to the Bundesliga.
Question: As soon as three days later on the Friday you travel to Hamburg for the Northern derby. That’s a true relegation battle. Will the cup game not almost be detrimental?
Pizarro: I’m used to things like that. If we think about it too much, and our heads are already in Hamburg, then we won’t put in a good performance in Munich. We need all our might and concentration for the semi-final. When that’s over, then we can think about Hamburger SV.
Question: Is it not difficult to physically cope with such a week?
Pizarro: Of course it’s not easy, but as I said: we can only afford to think about Bayern now.
Question: Will you get in touch with your former Bayern München teammates ahead of the game?
Pizarro: Possibly. We’re always in contact
Question: In the Bundesliga, Werder lost 5-0 in Munich, you didn’t feature in this game. But your team was heavily criticised for having practically gifted the game away. How do you want to start the game this time?
Pizarro: The Bundesliga game is in the past. Now a completely new game awaits us, and I think the win over Wolfsburg this weekend did us a lot of good. We’re coming to Munich in full swing. So we hope to turn this momentum into a good performance.
Question: What did the win against Wolfsburg do with the team?
Pizarro: We had been speaking all week about how we need points. We are in a difficult situation and really needed to finally win at home again. We managed to do this with a good performance. The win was important for us, for the fans and for the whole of Bremen.
Question: How important was the win for your manager Viktor Skripnik?
Pizarro: We all needed the win - he too. I think he is a little more relaxed now.
Question: The papers were saying that the players expressed their support for the manager.
Pizarro: The team doesn’t make the decision. We only said that we would like to continue working and improving with him. The final decision was made elsewhere.
Question: After the defeat against FC Augsburg, the situation intensified, then there was the show of solidarity from the fans. How did you take all of that?
Pizarro: It wasn’t easy. They were difficult moments. But we focused on the Wolfsburg game properly. I think everything is better now.
Question: How did you experience the atmosphere surrounding the game?
Pizarro: The support, as it has been all season, was simply superb. I’ve played here for many years now, but the atmosphere on Saturday was something else. I think it gave the team strength. The fans being happy obviously made the win even sweeter.
Question: When the team bus arrived before the game, there were countless Werder fans waiting to greet you.
Pizarro: Yes, that was extremely important for our team spirit. It definitely helped us. We all ran for one another and fought hard until the very end.
Question: You scored your 102nd goal for Werder and are now all-time top goalscorer at the club. What does that mean to you?
Pizarro: Das ist etwas Besonderes für mich. Ich bin froh, dass ich das geschafft habe. Aber ich will noch mehr Tore schießen.
It’s very special for me. I am very happy to have achieved this milestone, but I want to score more goals.
Question: Do you know how many goals you’ve scored in the DFB Cup?
Pizarro: No.
Question: 30. The next best in the all-time list is Hannes Löhr with 32 goals - he is in second place. Would you like to catch him up?
Pizarro: I wasn’t thinking about that. But as you mention it: it would be nice to catch him up.
Question: You said earlier that you would like to reach the final. Are you aware that the DFB-Cup final is between the two relegation playoff legs?
Pizarro: That’s not ideal for us. That would be difficult. We would just have to recuperate well between the games.
Question: It sounds like you’re expecting to be in the relegation playoff.
Pizarro: It’s obviously a possibility. But we have four more teams to play who are all fighting against relegation as well. That’s a positive for us. It’s all in our hands.
Question: Where do you always get your optimism from?
Pizarro: I’ve always been like that. It’s always worked well for me. Why should I change?
