Post-Match Report
“Then the goals will come all on their own…” – An Interview with Fabio Silva
How fit do you feel right now?
“I feel good. I trained hard during my vacation to prove myself this season. And of course, I’m trying to be in top form during practice. I want to be ready to do whatever the coach and the strength and conditioning coaches ask of me. So I’m really refreshed and feel like I’m ready to play again.”
What do you think of the game?
“It was tough. These conditions are too hot for playing, but that’s okay. I think we have to be prepared to play in different conditions. In Germany, of course, it’s colder and it rains more often. But we’re prepared for anything. The most important thing, though, was coming here to see the people and feel the affection of the Japanese fans. They’re so incredibly friendly and very polite. I’m really enjoying spending these days here, and I’m very happy.”
How would you assess the two halves?
“We had some good stretches with the ball in the first half. Of course, we can still improve in certain situations – for example, with the final pass – myself included. There were moments when I could have made better passes on two or three plays, but that’s normal; after all, it’s preseason. We have to prepare for what lies ahead in the Bundesliga, the Cup, and the Champions League, because we didn’t win any titles last season. We played a lot of good games, but we want to develop a winning mentality and win titles. Because playing for these colors means winning titles. That’s exactly what we want to achieve this season.”
BVB played two games in Japan but scored only one goal in 180 minutes. Where is there still room for improvement?
“We have players on our roster with whom we can create more chances. I think that’s the point: We can create more chances and cause more damage to the opponent. But this is just preseason; it’s a long process. Some national team players are just now joining us; they only played in this game today. And not all the players are here yet. We still have two friendly matches ahead of us to ensure we’re well prepared for what we want to achieve this season.”
In some preseason games, you were close to scoring a goal, but it just didn’t work out. What went better today?
“You just have to keep going. That’s the attitude I always have. Last season, you could see how I work, how I wait for my moment, for my chance. Of course, I want to score more goals this season than I did last season, but I believe my role on this team can be more than just scoring goals. I provided a lot of assists last season, and I want to continue doing that. I can contribute in many ways. You can see how I move for the team and my teammates and how I set up goals. The goals will come all on their own. That’s how it’s been my entire career, and that’s how I’ll keep doing it.”
