Following the Foals’ 4-4 draw at FC Ausgburg, we have the reactions of Jonas Omlin, Luca Netz, Julian Weigl and Borussia’s Sporting Director Roland Virkus, as well as both head coaches Gerardo Seoane and Enrico Maaßen.
Jonas Omlin: It was a very intense game – an attacking spectacle, two close penalty decisions, lots of back and forth play. It was definitely an attractive game for the spectators. I think that the point feels like a win today. We had to recover from a lot of setbacks. Getting a penalty in the last minute and also converting it is something we can definitely consider a success. You can definitely debate both penalties, but both teams took a point home in the end, and with these two decisions it’s a fair result.
Julian Weigl: We played very well, even if Augsburg had more possession. We hit them with long balls and our pace. When you’re leading 3-1, you have to go into the break with a better result than 3-3. Augsburg came out well after half time and asked us a lot of questions. We’re pleased that we showed our team spirit after falling behind and could at least take a point home. We would have liked to have won, but it gives us energy for the coming weeks that we threw everything at it at the end and came together as a team.
Luca Netz: It was good that we got a point. Getting points here is always difficult. Augsburg have a good team. It was a topsy-turvy encounter on the pitch today. First we led by two goals, then conceded an equaliser and fell behind after the break. Personally, I was very unhappy to concede the penalty. But I’m pleased that the team didn’t lose their fighting spirit afterwards and still managed to equalise.
Roland Virkus, sporting director: When you compare the performance today with those at Augsburg in past years, it was a good game from us. We let the two goal lead slip so quickly because we didn’t defend well enough in that period. But we have a young team who need time. This is a process and we consider ourselves on track. The lads gave everything and believed to the end that they could still get a point. They were rewarded for that in the end. It was a very reasonable start to the season, but there is still lots of potential for us to improve.
Head coach Gerardo Seoane: At the end, the prevailing feeling is a positive one after taking home a point in the last second. I compliment the team for their spirit. They tried until the end to come back again. Even the players who came off the bench caused chaos and made things happen. Altogether, it was a game with a lot of emotions. On the one hand, we defended well at times, but on the other we made too many mistakes and encouraged too much pressure on the ball in our own third. When you concede four away goals, you can’t be satisfied as a coach. This game definitely shows we have a lot to work on.
FC Augsburg head coach Enrico Maaßen: It was a bitter ending to the game for us, but I’d like to emphasise the positives. The way the team played was great. We were two goals behind twice and came back twice thanks to our strong mentality. The first three goals against us were too easy. To lose to a penalty at the end, where I can’t see any contact, is of course frustrating. I’d hoped that the referee would look at it again, but at the end of the day we’ll have to live with this decision.
