Stindl: "It shows how much has clicked between me and Borussia"

In an interview, Borussia captain Lars Stindl talks about yesterday's match against Eintracht Frankfurt, the reasons behind the defeat and his latest anniversary.

Lars, on Tuesday you were knocked out of the DFB-Pokal by Darmstadt, followed yesterday by a 3-1 defeat against Frankfurt. You surely had imagined the past week rather differently…

Stindl: That's true, this week feels really disappointing. You can see how quickly football can change. A fortnight ago, we were celebrating a convincing derby victory win, and everything felt great. During the week, our first setback came with the cup defeat, which really hurt. Yesterday's game against Frankfurt showed to what we are lacking if we want to beat an opponent of that calibre. That doesn’t completely knock us down, but it makes us all aware.

What were you missing yesterday?

Stindl: We had a lot of ideas for how we would play yesterday, but we were not able to execute them on the pitch. Our plans and our build-up were okay, but simple mistakes in our execution hindered us. When we lost the ball in the middle, we all too often let Frankfurt hit us on the counter - and that's exactly what they were waiting for. It was exactly what they wanted.

Eintracht took the lead early on, but you had the chance to get level quickly…

Stindl: In the end, it was the little things that decided the game. Frankfurt scored on what seemed like their first attack. After that, we had two chances to get level. If we had scored one of them, the game would have gone a completely different direction. But if you don't have that composure and then make those mistakes, it's difficult to assert control of the game. We tried everything after falling behind, but if you don't provide your maximum level of performance, it's extremely difficult to win games in the Bundesliga.

In the final moments, the game had to be suspended as the rope holding up a camera became defective. What was your experience of that moment?

Stindl: At first I was a bit scared because I didn't recognise what exactly was flying around. When I realised it was the camera, I felt a bit more reassured. It was a strange few minutes, I had never experienced it before. But it was also a bit of a shame for us, as we had just got one back and had some momentum. Maybe we would have used it better if we didn’t have this delay, but this incident was certainly not the reason why we lost.

Yesterday you played your 200th Bundesliga match for the Foals. How proud are you of this anniversary?

Stindl: I would have wished for a different result, but I'm still delighted about the anniversary, of course. To have played 200 Bundesliga games for Borussia is a really special moment for me. When you reach that number just over seven seasons, it also demonstrates some consistency when it comes to my performances. It just shows how much has clicked between me and Borussia. Even if it is just a statistic, it fills me with pride to be so deeply connected with this club. And I hope for a few more to come!

What moment do you remember most fondly from your time with Borussia in the Bundesliga?

Stindl: It's not easy to pick just one; there have been lots of brilliant moments in the Bundesliga. For example, my derby goals, my comeback when we won in 3-0 in Munich, my hat-trick in Frankfurt or how we qualified for the Champions League on the last matchday. But there are also many moments off the pitch that I remember fondly. When a song plays in the dressing room after an away win and everyone sings along – that’s a brilliant feeling.