It was a match that would shape the season, Emre Can told Sky after the final whistle. "That's why it was very important to win today." Captain Marco Reus added: "We're aware of our own strengths. We need to keep showing them. Ideally, consistently over 90 minutes."

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Marco Reus: "Everyone knows that I'm my own biggest critic. Today was a massive step forward for me personally – and for the team. We're delighted that we produced a second-half performance like that. It was very, very difficult in the opening period. Leipzig put us under permanent stress. We managed to get to grips with that better in the second half, as we had more phases of ball possession. We forced them onto the back foot, and then we have a certain attacking quality. Leipzig are an outstanding opponent who have conceded the fewest goals. With that in mind, we're unbelievably proud of the second half. We're aware of our own strengths. We need to keep showing them. Ideally, consistently over 90 minutes."

Emre Can: "The victory did us an immense lot of good. After coming on as a substitute, I was supposed to be aggressive, demand the ball and drive our play forward. I tried to help the team out. Everyone knows that it was a very, very important game for us today. It was a match that served as an indication of which way this year could go. That's why it was very important to win today. We showed a good reaction in the second half and deserved to win. You always need to be aggressive in top games. It's never nice if one of the teams get hurt. We needed it today. The first half wasn't so good from us, but we injected a bit more intensity into the game in the second half. That really helped us out. We played the ball forward with vertical passes. We have Erling Haaland up front. He's extremely fast. All in all, we performed very well."
Transcribed by Timo Lammert