Speaking in an interview with BVBtotal! following the match in Berlin, André Schürrle bemoaned Borussia's – and his own – ineffectiveness in front of goal: "Right at the start I was through on goal and should've scored." However, the striker is looking confidently ahead despite the disappointment in the capital.

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André, what do you believe were the key situations in today's match against Hertha BSC?
"Small details decided the match today. Right at the start I was through on goal and should've scored. If I had done, the match would have been different and it would have been much easier for us. Then we concede a stupid goal, but that can happen. I'm not blaming anyone there. In the second half we were doing well and had a lot of opportunities to go maybe 2-1 or even 3-1 ahead. Then it would have been completely over. But unfortunately we didn't take our chances, one thing led to another and we were beaten by a top free-kick. It's very annoying."

Hertha have the best home record in the league. What makes them so tough to play?
"They are extremely horrible to face. They're always on the opponent's heels, they're strong in the tackle, they win a lot of headers. They do it really well. They somehow bring the game down to their tempo. And when they go 1-0 or 2-1 ahead, it's really tough to come back because they have so many men at the back throwing themselves in the way. We knew that and so it's even more annoying that we didn't take the opportunities we had."

I guess it's doubly bitter when you look at the table. All of your direct rivals failed to win today…
"Yeah that's annoying too because we had the chance to pull away and give ourselves a bit of breathing space. But now we're all close together. It was an irritating afternoon in every respect." (djg)