"We have to approach it like a normal Bundesliga match" – An interview with Julian Brandt | OneFootball

The impressive run-in to date, which has resulted in 19 out of a possible 21 points from the last seven matches, has helped BVB rise to fifth position in a matter of weeks. The midfielder also wants to come out on top in the clash with already-relegated Kiel in front of a sell-out crowd of 81,365 spectators at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK. “I just believe that we have structure at the moment and have regained the required stability through discipline, especially in recent weeks and months.“

In a normal scenario, a home win by a margin of at least two goals would seal qualification for the Champions League – regardless of the outcome of the clash between direct rivals Freiburg and Freiburg, provided it is not an extraordinarily high-scoring match in Freiburg. The gap to fourth-placed Freiburg is only one point, while third-placed Frankfurt have three more points. Brandt does not want to get involved in the calculations doing the rounds at the moment. “We need to approach it like a normal Bundesliga game. Nothing more. Nothing less. In every game that I have played for Borussia Dortmund to date, there has always been something at stake. It's simply a case of winning the match.“

He also attributes the sporting upturn at BVB to the work done by coach Niko Kovac. “He pays attention to the small details. They often prove decisive. He's very strict in that regard. We're all different people, but on the whole it does you good to have a certain line – that's what he stands for,“ explained Brandt, adding: “It's not as though we all have to sit to attention at school like we felt we had to 30 or 40 years ago. When we're working, we're working; and when we're having fun, we're having fun.“

In addition, Brandt holds the coach in high regard for never doubting his qualities after poorer performances. “He has definitely given me a certain amount of support over the last few months. That has definitely done me good.“ When the tactician went out of his way to defend him against growing public criticism, the 47-time international drew his own conclusions: “What Niko says about me publicly in press conferences is not for me, it's more for all the media representatives. I already know how he talks to me in our training rooms, how we communicate with each other and how we deal with each other. I know what I have in him and I think he also knows what he has in me.“

And yet his sixth season in a Black & Yellow shirt has not passed him by unscathed, as he himself admits: “The second year at Borussia Dortmund wasn't fun in a sporting sense either. I was on the bench a lot. The only difference is that now of course the criticism has centred a bit. A lot of it was certainly focused on Emre Can this year, a lot of it was focused on Nuri Sahin and it now a lot of it has been focused on me in the second half-season. It has been an educational year,“ said Brandt, in reference to the sometimes harsh criticism on social media.

But his personal performance curve has been on the rise again recently. “It may have taken me a little too long to find my form again. Fundamentally, though, it's not as if I'm now saying: what a shitty year it has been,“ said the 29-year-old. There is still a chance for the course to be corrected. “In the end, the most important thing is always how the season finishes. We've given ourselves the chance to at least achieve our minimum sporting objectives. If we do, then I can live with it if people are getting increasingly annoyed by me. The club very clearly comes first at this time.“

The enjoyment of playing has now returned – not only for Brandt. “We have now scored four goals against Leverkusen, we scored four goals against Wolfsburg, we scored three goals against Hoffenheim and we scored three goals against Gladbach. That is ultimately the end result of fun and enjoyment, which we've earned ourselves through our hard work,“ commented Brandt. A successful result on Saturday could ensure the team finish in a Champions League berth – and make it easier to look back on a tricky season that at one point saw them drop down to 11th place.