Bayern have returned to competitive DFB Cup and Bundesliga action after the winter break, and have also made key signings with an eye on next season – a good time for fcbayern.de to catch up with chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who discussed the restart results, the Anatoliy Tymoshchuk transfer, the club’s policy regarding its most promising young players, and future plans for the likes of on-loan Mats Hummels.
Interview: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
fcbayern.de: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Bayern beat Stuttgart comfortably but promptly lost to Hamburg. Have you recovered yet?
Rummenigge: “It was a very unlucky defeat, although what mattered was the team showing its true colours in the second half. We played Hamburg off the park and created a ridiculous number of chances, but unfortunately didn’t take any of them, which is a criticism we have to level at ourselves. The second is that we didn’t approach the game seriously enough. After the gala in Stuttgart, maybe we thought we could win at half-throttle, which is why we didn’t do so well in the first half-hour.“
fcbayern.de: Borussia Dortmund visit the Allianz Arena on Sunday, and FCB travel to Berlin a week later. Neither match rates as easy, so are Bayern already under pressure?
Rummenigge: “We’ll be under pressure for the rest of the season. We want to win the league, but there are three teams ahead of us for now. We always knew a restart programme of Stuttgart, Hamburg, Dortmund and Berlin wouldn’t be easy. But we’re optimistic, and we want to go top of the league as soon as possible.“
fcbayern.de: Bayern have rarely kept a clean sheet this season. Should we be worried?
Rummenigge: “I’m not concerned, because we’re a very attacking side, so you’re always going to concede from time to time. And up to now, we’ve always been able to come back from goals down, because we’re so fit. Other teams often run out of steam after 70 minutes, but we’re still capable of scoring in the closing stages. I also don’t reckon we’ll miss as many chances as we did in Hamburg.“
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