At just 24 years-old, Julian Brandt is a Germany international with 190 Bundesliga appearances to his name. The gifted and creative midfielder is now in his first season at the Signal Iduna Park following his switch from Bayer Leverkusen last summer.
Brandt has hit the ground running in the return to matches and was involved in all four of Dortmund’s goals against FC Schalke 04 in the Revierderby, including two direct assists.
In an interview, the Borussia Dortmund midfielder discusses his favourite position on the pitch, what he expects from the rest of the season, and what it takes to become Bundesliga champions.
The Interview
Question: What is your favourite position on the pitch?
Julian Brandt (JB): In the end I am the last person to be complaining about this because it is always down to how you interpret the position. If you have someone like Thomas Delaney, who is strong on the defensive side, next to you, then you can take certain liberties in terms of how far forward you can go. However, the centre is my favourite.
Q: What do you expect from the rest of the season?
JB: As a club, with only nine games left and only being a few points behind first place, then we will have to try and get past them with all our might.It is difficult to look at the league table and make assumptions because there has been such a long break and the circumstances have completely changed. Typically I would look at this as if we all start with no points and have nine games ahead.
Q: What is going to be decisive to win the Bundesliga?
JB: In the end it depends on how strong we are mentally. We have already seen how much quality the team has. I do not know how you would deal with this kind of situation, this is the real question. Who is ready to take everything on? Those who are will be the ones who have the most points at the end. To win the League like this would be unique.
