Haberer: Yes, we were the better team in terms of coaching and in terms of the football we played out there on the pitch. The only criticism we have of ourselves is that we didn’t put the game to bed earlier on. If we had taken one of our chances after it was 2-2 then that would have been end-game, because England didn’t have much more left to give. We would have been furious with ourselves had we lost the game on penalties, but everything turned out well in the end. It’s probably nicer to have won the game like we did.
DFB.de: Now Spain await you in the final after defeating Italy 3-1 in the semi-final. What are Germany’s chances against them?
Haberer: It’s 50/50. We’ve gained a lot of confidence and we know what we can do, but we also know how strong Spain are – they’ve shown their ability in every game in the tournament they’ve played. We want to write our own history in this final too – we can’t wait for the game.
DFB.de: What do you think the chances are of you starting the game?
Haberer: I’ve proved that I can do well and of course I’m hoping to be play, but the decision lies with the manager as always.
Germany’s U21s are in the final of the European Championship in Poland after the nervy penalty-thriller against England. Stefan Kuntz’s side take on Spain on Friday (20:45 CEST).
The Germans fielded the same starting eleven three times out of three in the group stage of the competition, but in the semi-final Kuntz made three changes to his side, including giving SC Freiburg’s Janik Haberer a chance to play in the midfield, who put in a strong performance in front of the defence.
Haberer talks about his first start for the U21s and the crazy game against England. In addition, the 23-year-old reveals what he thinks is the biggest strength of this Germany team, and looks ahead to the final against Spain.
DFB.de: Janik Haberer, after playing for a short time against the Czech Republic (2-0) in the group stage, did you think that you would have a chance of starting in the semi-final?
Janik Haberer: I didn’t think that I would, but of course I couldn’t have been happier to be starting after the manager had a discussion with me. He often said that it’s in tournaments like these that everyone has to take their opportunities when they get them. That’s why I really tried my hardest in training and always believed in getting my chance.
DFB.de: Are you happy with your performances so far?
Haberer: Yes, overall I’m happy. Yes there are one or two things I could have done better but I’ll bear that in my mind the next time I play.
DFB.de: You were taken off in the 102nd minute. Did the manager’s decision to do so have something to do with the impending penalty shootout?
Haberer: No, I started to cramp up in extra time. It really was something else to have played for that many minutes when I’d only played ten minutes prior to that in the tournament. Dominik Kohr took my place and did superbly. I probably wouldn’t have taken a penalty too – I’ve had a bad experience with doing so in the DFB-Pokal (laughs).
DFB.de: So far 18 of the 20 outfield players in your team have received minutes on the pitch. The seven goals have been scored by six different goalscorers. What does that say about this Germany side?
Haberer: It simply says that we’ve got a huge amount of quality in the squad. Everybody wants to play and they put in a great performance when they’re called upon and receive their chance. That’s not to be taken for granted – it shows how much chemistry we have here as a team. The manager has the tough task of deciding who to play and which players are a good fit for which situations.
DFB.de: How does team chemistry like yours come about?
Haberer: It goes back to our training camp in Grassau, or even back to the EURO qualifiers. We have a superb understanding of one another and enjoy healthy competition for places in the team, and so we all want to be out there on the pitch. However, we all cheer on the others if we’re not playing ourselves, there’s no resentment. The success of the team comes first and that’s why we’re so successful.
DFB.de: How would you describe the 120 minutes and the penalty shootout against England?
Haberer: It was something else. It started off with a bit of a shock because of Niki’s (Stark) injury. Our centre-backs had been outstanding so far but we had to make a change to the line-up shortly before kicking off, but Gideon (Jung) played his socks off. After some initial problems, we got in to the swing of things and started to get comfortable in the game. However, England remained dangerous from set-pieces.
DFB.de: So the win at the end was deserved?
Haberer: Yes, we were the better team in terms of coaching and in terms of the football we played out there on the pitch. The only criticism we have of ourselves is that we didn’t put the game to bed earlier on. If we had taken one of our chances after it was 2-2 then that would have been end-game, because England didn’t have much more left to give. We would have been furious with ourselves had we lost the game on penalties, but everything turned out well in the end. It’s probably nicer to have won the game like we did.
DFB.de: Now Spain await you in the final after defeating Italy 3-1 in the semi-final. What are Germany’s chances against them?
Haberer: It’s 50/50. We’ve gained a lot of confidence and we know what we can do, but we also know how strong Spain are – they’ve shown their ability in every game in the tournament they’ve played. We want to write our own history in this final too – we can’t wait for the game.
DFB.de: What do you think the chances are of you starting the game?
Haberer: I’ve proved that I can do well and of course I’m hoping to be play, but the decision lies with the manager as always.
