Sebastian Rudy: We didn’t play badly today. The difference was that Bayern took their chances clinically and we didn’t. You saw how quickly a game in Munich can become 4-0. We came back into the game after the break but Bayern scored two goals and that shows their class. We need to be more clinical next week.
Hannover 96 1–3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Ron-Robert Zieler: It’s annoying to lose this game. I thought that we played well in the first half, but we conceded early in the second period, which made it difficult for us. Bayer then showed their class. I’m certain that we will fight back.
Karim Bellarabi: We knew that it would be a difficult game because Hannover are good at home. You could see this in the first half. We won our tackles throughout the game and took our chances in the second half. Consequently, we deserved to pick up the three points.
FC Schalke 04 3–2 VfL Wolfsburg
Benedikt Höwedes: Our tactics made life difficult for Wolfsburg. We always had an extra man in midfield and if we lost the ball we reverted to a back five which made it tough for them to break us down. We played fast football and scored some great goals. It was annoying that we conceded so close to the break but overall I was happy with our first half performance. In the second half we dug in and fought for the points. Wolfsburg put us under a huge amount of pressure but we coped with it.
VfB Stuttgart 0–1 FC Augsburg
Antonio Rüdiger: The referee is not to blame. There were debateable situations, no question. The red card worked out perfectly for Augsburg. Adam’s movement was totally natural and I really don’t know if a penalty should have been awarded. In the end, our decent performance was worth nothing, because we lost the match.
Plenty of action, great players and interesting opinions: Germany’s internationals were out in force again on matchday 12 of the Bundesliga. FC Bayern welcomed back Bastian Schweinsteiger during their 4-0 win over Hoffenheim, whilst Borussia Dortmund squandered a 2-0 lead to draw 2-2 away to Paderborn. After the action DFB.de sought the opinions of Germany’s stars including World Champions Ron-Robert Zieler and Benedikt Höwedes as well as Ilkay Gündogan, Karim Bellarabi and Antonio Rüdiger.
SC Paderborn 2–2 Borussia Dortmund
Ilkay Gündogan: We played quite well in the first half and were clearly the better side. In the second half we had chances to make it 3-0 but then they scored to make it 2-1 from a counter after a poor corner from us. You can’t afford to concede goals like that. After that Marco got injured, we couldn’t grab a third and they managed to equalise. I don’t know whether a Bundesliga side has ever had such a bad second half.
Bayern München 4–0 TSG Hoffenheim
Bastian Schweinsteiger: First and foremost I was happy to be back in the squad and to play a few minutes. I now need to see whether I can cope with a full week of training after playing. There is still some work to be done. I always believed in myself and knew that I would return. The injury was a bitter blow but we always knew how it was going. Obvioulsy I had to be patient; the club were too. I’m now happy to be back and feeling good once again.
Manuel Neuer: From time to time out passes weren’t accurate enough, which allowed Hoffenheim to create a couple of chances.
Mario Götze: I’m enjoying my football at the minute. I’m fit and healthy; it’s going well.
Kevin Volland: We played well in the second half and dominated it for a spell. We didn’t deserve to go 3-0 down. It left a bitter taste in our mouths; if Adam Szalai or Anthony Modeste had converted their chances earlier in the game we could have gained something. We created some good chances, especially in the first 25 minutes when we pressed them strongly. Our final pass wasn’t good enough. We were unlucky against Köln and it’s the same story again today. We need to now beat Hannover.
Sebastian Rudy: We didn’t play badly today. The difference was that Bayern took their chances clinically and we didn’t. You saw how quickly a game in Munich can become 4-0. We came back into the game after the break but Bayern scored two goals and that shows their class. We need to be more clinical next week.
Hannover 96 1–3 Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Ron-Robert Zieler: It’s annoying to lose this game. I thought that we played well in the first half, but we conceded early in the second period, which made it difficult for us. Bayer then showed their class. I’m certain that we will fight back.
Karim Bellarabi: We knew that it would be a difficult game because Hannover are good at home. You could see this in the first half. We won our tackles throughout the game and took our chances in the second half. Consequently, we deserved to pick up the three points.
FC Schalke 04 3–2 VfL Wolfsburg
Benedikt Höwedes: Our tactics made life difficult for Wolfsburg. We always had an extra man in midfield and if we lost the ball we reverted to a back five which made it tough for them to break us down. We played fast football and scored some great goals. It was annoying that we conceded so close to the break but overall I was happy with our first half performance. In the second half we dug in and fought for the points. Wolfsburg put us under a huge amount of pressure but we coped with it.
VfB Stuttgart 0–1 FC Augsburg
Antonio Rüdiger: The referee is not to blame. There were debateable situations, no question. The red card worked out perfectly for Augsburg. Adam’s movement was totally natural and I really don’t know if a penalty should have been awarded. In the end, our decent performance was worth nothing, because we lost the match.
Quotes: bvb.de, fcbayern.de, DFB.de, sportschau.de, Facebook-Page Ron-Robert Zieler, bayer04.de, achtzehn99.de, vfb.de
