Created on 17-02-2008 at 00:00 AM
Luca Toni provided yet more evidence of his credentials as a worthy World Cup winner with a coolly-taken second half hat-trick as Bayern notched up a 3-0 away win against Hannover 96. “And if we’d been more ruthless, we would have taken the lead in the first half,” FCB boss Ottmar Hitzfeld commented afterwards.
Reaction to Hannover v Bayern
Ottmar Hitzfeld: “We made much better use of our chances in the second half. If we’d been more ruthless, we would have taken the lead in the first half. We didn’t start particularly well and Hannover forced us to defend, but we played good football from the 20th minute onwards. We were well organised and also very determined.“
Luca Toni: “Whenever one man scores three goals, it’s earned by the team as a whole. Werder Bremen pulled level yesterday, so it was up to us to respond. I’m very pleased with the win. Bayern paid a lot of money for me, so I’m hoping to repay some of the fee in goals.“
Dieter Hecking (Hannover coach): “After taking the lead, Bayern pushed on in determined manner looking to kill off the match. It was obvious to all that we’re lacking in certain areas, especially when we went looking for a way back. We’ve had a difficult time of it since the restart and we need to get back on track in Bochum."
Valerien Ismael (ex-Bayern): “I was substituted at half-time with a minor strain, as we didn’t want to take any risks. We did OK in the first half. We started extremely well and tried to get forward, but Bayern controlled the second half and made it very difficult for us. Getting back out onto the field of play was just a fantastic feeling for me. I’ve enjoyed my day despite the result.“