We heard the thoughts of the players and coaches following Borussia’s 2-2 draw with Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday evening.
Christoph Kramer: We set ourselves a clear goal of avoiding another first 30 minutes like we had against Dortmund. The team responded well after going behind. We were much better in the second half and deserved a point in the end. I’m really happy for Lars that he was able to score in his final away game for us. He’s a great player and captain, and it’s always a pleasure to share the pitch with him.
Lars Stindl: The point is very important for the mood in the team in our current situation. We didn’t have much of a grip on the game in the first half; Leverkusen were very incisive, were clinical with their chances and deserved to lead 2-0 at the break. Our reaction in the second half was decent, even though our goal back was somewhat fortuitous. After that, we were really pushing against a Europa League semi-finalist that’s very strong on the counter, a side you can’t afford to make mistakes against. I don’t think you can say our equaliser at the end was undeserved, because we worked hard and also had chances to score before that. Of course, it was a serious mistake that led to the goal, but you create your own luck.
Julian Weigl: I’m sure a lot of people were thinking it was going to be a repeat of last week when we went 2-0 down early on. I didn’t think we played all that badly in the first half though, just that we weren’t attentive enough in one or two moments. We can be very happy with the second half. Everyone had the sense that we could still take something from the game. Coming back from 2-0 down is really positive. We showed that we can overcome hurdles in a match, which is a good and crucial sign.
Daniel Farke: We didn’t act quickly enough in the first half. We were too sloppy in possession and gave the ball away cheaply too many times. We needed to be more awake and sharper. We didn’t defend crosses well in particular and we deserved to be 2-0 down at half time. I’m really proud of my team’s reaction though. Putting in a second-half performance like that at 2-0 down against one of Europe’s best counterattacking sides is really impressive. We never gave up and forced the goals. We more than deserved the equaliser. We could almost be disappointed that we didn’t manage to go on and win.
Bayer Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso: We started well, had control for much of the game and deservedly led 2-0. There were enough chances to decide the game with a third goal early in the second half. I’m not happy with our performance towards the end, because we allowed Gladbach to take over proceedings more and more and weren’t proactive enough. Both of their goals came from defensive mistakes, which we cannot allow to happen at this level. Now we have to win in Bochum next week if we want to defend sixth place.
