Pep Guardiola started work at Bayern last week, and on Monday 1 July, the second headline signing of 2013 also officially took up his duties at the club. On his first day as an FCB player, Germany international Mario Götze took time out for a chat with fcbayern.de, confirming that the decision to leave his childhood club Borussia Dortmund had been tough, but making no secret of his happiness about the move to Munich: “I'm really looking forward to the new challenge now. It's what I wanted - out of conviction. I aim to take the next step in my career with FC Bayern. That's why I'm here, and I'm really looking forward to it."
Interview: Mario Götze
fcbayern.de: Mario, welcome to FC Bayern! What did it feel like when you arrived at club headquarters as an FCB player?
Mario Götze: Very good up to now, but I've only been here a couple of days and I've not yet been able to take part in daily training. I'm looking forward to it all starting up for real for me too.
Were you nervous when you entered the dressing room for the first time?
Nervous would be the wrong word. It was more like positive tension. You don't know what awaits, so obviously you keep yourself to yourself and take a good look around. But it won't take long to settle down, because fortunately, I already know half the players from the Germany national team, which is very handy.
Unfortunately, you can't yet train with your new team-mates. What shape are you in?
Yes, that's the only annoying thing right now. The [ruptured] muscle certainly feels a lot better now, but I'm still not fit enough to run.
What exactly is your sports rehabilitation plan?
There are no precise deadlines or timings. We're taking each day as it comes, and deciding what I can do on that basis. At the moment I'm working out on the ergometer. I'll soon have a check-up and MRI scan, and that'll tell us more. But I'm confident I'll be able to start running in 14 days or so, and I should be fit for the squad programme in three to four weeks.
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