Foals play out goalless draw with Union Berlin
Borussia drew with 1. FC Union Berlin on Matchday 31 of the Bundesliga. Neither side could find the breakthrough in a hard-fought encounter.
Herrmann: "Don’t want to forget a second of my time at Borussia"
Patrick Herrmann made his 300th Bundesliga appearance for the Foals during the season-opener against FC Bayern München. The 30-year-old is just the seventh player to reach this milestone for the club, and spoke about the achievement in an interview.
Patrick, you opened the 59th Bundesliga season against FC Bayern München at BORUSSIA-PARK on Friday. What thoughts do you have about that night?
Patrick Herrmann: It was definitely an exciting game for the fans, with lots of chances on both ends. In the end, we could have even won it – especially if we had been awarded a penalty. Overall, the 1-1 draw is a decent result. It was fun to be back on the pitch playing Bundesliga football on Friday night and to have fans in the stands.
Nearly 23,000 fans were in attendance. What was the atmosphere like at BORUSSIA-PARK after such a long time without any fans?
Herrmann: To get to open the season with a floodlight game at home against Bayern and to also have around 23,000 fans there for it after such a long time was a dream, to be honest. As we were lined up on the pitch prior to kick off and the national anthem was playing, I had a look around and it gave me goosebumps. It was great to see fans back in the stands.
There’s another reason why it was a special game for you. Were you aware beforehand that it was your 300th competitive appearance for Borussia?
Herrmann: At the end of last season, I knew that this special milestone would be coming up this year. But, I didn’t really think about it that much afterwards. Hoffi reminded me of it on Friday morning before the game. Of course it’s something very special. 300 is a huge number.
What does it mean to you, to have made all of your Bundesliga appearances for Borussia?
Herrmann: I’m definitely proud to have made all 300 of my Bundesliga appearances for one club. These days, it’s normal to be transferred around a lot. Several players spend just one, two, or maybe even three years at a club before moving elsewhere. That’s why I’m very happy that that wasn’t the case for me. I don’t want to forget a second of my time at Borussia.
Wolfgang Kleff (321), Hans-Günter Bruns (331), Christian Hochstätter (339), Herbert Wimmer (366), Uwe Kamps (390) and Berti Vogts (419) are the only other players to have ever made more Bundesliga appearances for the Foals. What does it mean to you to be included in the same class as all these Borussia legends?
Herrmann: It’s incredible. The players that are ahead of me or even just behind me in this ranking are all icons and absolute club legends, most of them from the 1970s. It’s great to be able to be part of history like this. I’m also proud of not having done what most players tend to do these days, namely changing clubs every few years. I’m very happy with how things have gone for me.
You have experienced plenty of highs by also some lows since making your Bundesliga debut for the Foals 11 years ago against VfL Bochum on 16th January 2010 (2-1 loss). How did you deal with those?
Herrmann: It’s something we all know well from our own lives: things don’t always go to plan. It’s just not possible, especially in football. I knew at the start of my career that there would always be setbacks, either through injuries or for other reasons. That’s part of it and you just have to overcome them. After that, the good times will resume.
What other personal goals have you set for yourself?
Herrmann: It’s difficult to plan things in football. However, everyone knows the connection I have to this club. Of course I want to play in as many games as possible, and maybe I’ll manage to surpass a few more names on that list (laughs). As a striker, of course the most fun you can have is scoring and setting up goals. I just want to continue to perform well.
As a team, what goals do you have for the new season?
Herrmann: Our goal is to have a successful season. We won’t be competing in three different competitions this time around. Although we obviously would have liked to be competing in Europe, we can also see this as an opportunity. In this way, we can focus fully on the Bundesliga and want to have a strong season. You could see the potential that our team has on Friday night already and that we can win games like that. That leaves you hungry for more.
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