"Going into the World Cup as reigning champions is obviously never easy." Reus with Bierhoff.

Reus: "I needed a few days to get that feel for the ball again, to find my rhythm."

Marco Reus: "I've had a lot of injuries, but this one was my most serious."

Marco Reus: “If we find our rhythm, there’s a lot going in our favour”

After a long eight months, both for him and Dortmund fans, Reus was declared fit again in February to return to Bundesliga action – and the winger certainly did not disappoint. He almost did not have a single bad outing, scoring seven goals in eleven games. Now Reus, who will celebrate his 29th birthday in a week, is preparing for his first World Cup. He says: “I want to help the team on the pitch.”

DFB.de: Marco Reus, is there anything fun about rehab?

Marco Reus: No, absolutely nothing! But if there’s one thing, then it’s really only the feeling that you're making progress week by week. From the first moment after the operation, I worked on building up my muscle again, otherwise it would have taken even longer. I’ve had a lot of injuries, but this partial tear of my ACL was my most serious. During my time out, I took everything step by step, I defined different stages for my long way back. I also had to get a way with my girlfriend to turn my thoughts onto something else.

DFB.de: How long was it until you were able to train with the ball again?

Reus: Five months. I needed a few days to get that feel for the ball again, to find my rhythm. For the heart and soul, it really was a great moment being back with the football.

DFB.de: After an eight-month break, you scored seven goals in eleven games – you were back to your best. How did you manage that?

Reus: Good question. On principle, I try to get back to a good level after an injury – that’s what I demand of myself. I want to take my team forwards. The coach (Peter Stöger), had a good feeling, as did I. Normally, I would have needed four more weeks, but as I said, I had a good feeling and everything worked out well.

DFB.de: Did Joachim Löw call you before selecting you in his squad on May 15th?

Reus: Yes, he told me I’d be in the squad. We had a good chat.

DFB.de: How are you approaching the tournament – do you want to be in the starting XI, or is the main thing for you that you’re there with the team?

Reus: I definitely want to help the team on the pitch. When the tournament starts, I’ll be 29. I know what I’m capable of. The coach will decide who plays and every player has to respect his decisions. Like in every tournament, for every individual and for us as a team, it’ll come down to fine details.

DFB.de: There’s quite the competition for places on the left-hand side too, right?

Reus: Absolutely. That’s part of it and makes the job more interesting. Because it’s like this, a lot is demanded of every individual in every training session. I definitely believe that the coach and his staff want this kind of situation, so that there’s at least two strong players vying for every position, pushing each other. Whoever performs the best will play, and the tournament is extremely long.

DFB.de: How strong can Die Mannschaft be?

Reus: Going into the World Cup as reigning champions is obviously never easy.

DFB.de: What’s your feeling then after the first two training sessions?

Reus: I’m sure that if the team finds its rhythm and takes on board the way we want to play, there’s a lot going in Germany’s favour. But there’s also no point in already speculating who we could face in the quarterfinals. No one should underestimate our group with Mexico, South Korea and Sweden, as a lot will be demanded of us in those games. Over the course of the tournament, we’ll definitely have to win at least one or two really close games that will be decided by centimetres or an individual. But that’s what football is all about, especially at a World Cup. As a player, I want to be on the pitch for those kinds of games.

DFB.de: If the national team get far in the tournament, you’ll miss the new Dortmund coach starting his new role. BVB play a friendly on July 13th against Austria Vienna, the World Cup final is on July 15th in Moscow. How happy are you that Lucien Favre has been appointed?

Reus: I’ve had a few club coaches and he is probably the best I’ve experienced. Of course, a lot of time has past since we worked together in Gladbach back in the 2010/11 season. Back then, it was great to see how meticulously a coach can work, both in the changing room and on the pitch, where he did everything himself and had everything under control. I hope he still works the same way today, so we can get BVB back on track.

created by mmc/ms