Borussia Mönchengladbach remain in third place and on course to qualify for next year's Champions League campaign following their 3-1 home victory against Borussia Dortmund on matchday 28 Bundesliga. Patrick Herrmann played a big part in their triumph over BVB, helping create first goal and assisting Raffael to make it 2-0 with a 70-yard solo run through Dortmund's defence.
The former Germany U21 international spoke with DFB.de about Borussia's great reaction following their DFB Cup exit in Bielefeld, his solo run and Gladbach's rivals during the end-of-season run-in.
DFB.de: Patrick Herrmann, another game without scoring a goal and another poor performance from you. What do you have to say for yourself?
Patrick Herrmann: (laughs) Yes I agree, it was really poor and I'm obviously extremely disappointed. No, but seriously, we put in a great performance today and deserved to win. We didn’t allow many chances and played great defensively. The opening goal obviously played into our hands and was extremely important for our morale following our DFB Cup exit in Bielefeld. Our tactical organisation was good and we kept producing dangerous moments in the final third.
DFB.de: Was there a moment in the game when you thought: "I can do anything today!"?
Herrmann: A goal would've been extremely nice, but it wasn’t meant to be. However, we got three points against Borussia Dortmund – what more could you want?
DFB.de: You assisted the second goal following a 70-yard solo run. What was going through your head at the time?
Herrmann: Every time a Dortmund player closed in on me, I managed to get a slight touch on the ball and catch them on the wrong foot, which opened up my path towards goal.
DFB.de: Did you ever consider taking a shot yourself, or was it always your plan to lay the ball off to your teammate?
Herrmann: You obviously think about what you're going to do. Raffael was in a better position and completely unmarked. It doesn’t take you very long to realise that passing the ball is the better option.
DFB.de: Isn't it difficult to put personal glory and those selfish feelings to one side after a solo run like that?
Herrmann: No, not at all. The joy of winning three points outweighs that completely. In the end, it doesn’t matter who scores the goals.
DFB.de: Was it your plan to attack Dortmund right from the opening whistle?
Herrmann: It wasn't necessarily our plan to score within the opening minute, but we'll obviously take it. We immediately put them under pressure and won possession fairly quickly after kick-off. Early goals can happen. Our lead then allowed us to focus on counterattacking, which is something we do very well.
DFB.de: You now have a 20-point lead over Dortmund. Have you finally proven which team is the better Borussia?
Herrmann: Things looked a little different in our first encounter this season, where things didn't go so well for us at all, so we had something to make up for and showed a different side to us this time around.
DFB.de: Now that you've extended your contract, you might be able to shed some light on the rumour that Dortmund were interested in signing you?
Herrmann: I don't need to talk about different clubs. Sure, there were teams interested in signing me – without a doubt. But I will not comment on which teams they were. Everything is going great here in Gladbach at the moment and that's the most important thing.
DFB.de: What is still possible for Gladbach this season. Do you have to look more towards Leverkusen and Schalke behind you in the table, or is it perhaps still possible to challenge Wolfsburg for second?
Herrmann: We aren’t thinking about any of that stuff. We are third and are already exceeding expectations. We are on a great run at the moment and will look to keep it going. If that puts us in third or fourth place at the end of the season – great! It would be fantastic for all of us.
DFB.de: Leverkusen are now your direct rivals for third place. We might even get a real final between the two of you on 9th May.
Herrmann: I'm sure it will be a great game. But even if we only finish fourth in the end, it would be a huge accomplishment. It's not something we would have expected prior to the season.
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Borussia Mönchengladbach remain in third place and on course to qualify for next year's Champions League campaign following their 3-1 home victory against Borussia Dortmund on matchday 28 Bundesliga. Patrick Herrmann played a big part in their triumph over BVB, helping create first goal and assisting Raffael to make it 2-0 with a 70-yard solo run through Dortmund's defence.
The former Germany U21 international spoke with DFB.de about Borussia's great reaction following their DFB Cup exit in Bielefeld, his solo run and Gladbach's rivals during the end-of-season run-in.
DFB.de: Patrick Herrmann, another game without scoring a goal and another poor performance from you. What do you have to say for yourself?
Patrick Herrmann: (laughs) Yes I agree, it was really poor and I'm obviously extremely disappointed. No, but seriously, we put in a great performance today and deserved to win. We didn’t allow many chances and played great defensively. The opening goal obviously played into our hands and was extremely important for our morale following our DFB Cup exit in Bielefeld. Our tactical organisation was good and we kept producing dangerous moments in the final third.
DFB.de: Was there a moment in the game when you thought: "I can do anything today!"?
Herrmann: A goal would've been extremely nice, but it wasn’t meant to be. However, we got three points against Borussia Dortmund – what more could you want?
DFB.de: You assisted the second goal following a 70-yard solo run. What was going through your head at the time?
Herrmann: Every time a Dortmund player closed in on me, I managed to get a slight touch on the ball and catch them on the wrong foot, which opened up my path towards goal.
DFB.de: Did you ever consider taking a shot yourself, or was it always your plan to lay the ball off to your teammate?
Herrmann: You obviously think about what you're going to do. Raffael was in a better position and completely unmarked. It doesn’t take you very long to realise that passing the ball is the better option.
DFB.de: Isn't it difficult to put personal glory and those selfish feelings to one side after a solo run like that?
Herrmann: No, not at all. The joy of winning three points outweighs that completely. In the end, it doesn’t matter who scores the goals.
DFB.de: Was it your plan to attack Dortmund right from the opening whistle?
Herrmann: It wasn't necessarily our plan to score within the opening minute, but we'll obviously take it. We immediately put them under pressure and won possession fairly quickly after kick-off. Early goals can happen. Our lead then allowed us to focus on counterattacking, which is something we do very well.
DFB.de: You now have a 20-point lead over Dortmund. Have you finally proven which team is the better Borussia?
Herrmann: Things looked a little different in our first encounter this season, where things didn't go so well for us at all, so we had something to make up for and showed a different side to us this time around.
DFB.de: Now that you've extended your contract, you might be able to shed some light on the rumour that Dortmund were interested in signing you?
Herrmann: I don't need to talk about different clubs. Sure, there were teams interested in signing me – without a doubt. But I will not comment on which teams they were. Everything is going great here in Gladbach at the moment and that's the most important thing.
DFB.de: What is still possible for Gladbach this season. Do you have to look more towards Leverkusen and Schalke behind you in the table, or is it perhaps still possible to challenge Wolfsburg for second?
Herrmann: We aren’t thinking about any of that stuff. We are third and are already exceeding expectations. We are on a great run at the moment and will look to keep it going. If that puts us in third or fourth place at the end of the season – great! It would be fantastic for all of us.
DFB.de: Leverkusen are now your direct rivals for third place. We might even get a real final between the two of you on 9th May.
Herrmann: I'm sure it will be a great game. But even if we only finish fourth in the end, it would be a huge accomplishment. It's not something we would have expected prior to the season.
