Bruun Larsen: "There's greater competition between us"

Jacob, you're in ninth place and in the last sixteen of the DFB cup. How would you judge the team's performances in October?

"The cup is going very well for us so far. The lads played a great game against Kiel. But that wasn't a given because cup games are always difficult - we saw that in the first round against Viktoria Köln, who are in the third division. Regarding the Bundesliga, I think we are at least where we deserve to be. We played really well against 1. FC Köln and Hertha BSC. If you ignore the game against Bayern, we have offered good performances recently. We can build on that."

What is your goal for the DFB cup?

"We are now in the last sixteen, and Bayern have already been knocked out. They're both great news for us. But we now need to play against Freiburg, who are currently in great form and haven't lost a game yet this season. When the time comes in January however, we'll take the task head on. Playing in the DFB cup next year will do us the world of good, and it's enormously important to us. It's a great competition, which I have already won before with Dortmund. In Germany, the cup is very highly regarded, and the games are great for all the spectators too. That's why we're extremely pleased with the draw and the chance to play at home."  

On the face of it, it seems like the whole team is coming together on the right track better and better. 

"Absolutely. It's good for us that some of the guys are back. Ermin Bičakčić is still unavailable, but otherwise, almost all the other players are fit again. Benjamin Hübner, for example, is back in training and lifts us massively as captain. His being there is important for us, even if he still needs some time after his long injury of course. He's back to 100% in the dressing room. With people coming back, there's greater competition in training, which is in turn raising our level." 

Away from home, on the other hand, things haven't gone so well so far. What do you have to do to make sure things go better against VfL Bochum on Saturday?

"A compact stadium awaits us in Bochum. In the youth teams, I commonly played against VfL with BVB. It will be different to playing at home. But our mentality has to stay the same as it was during our previous home games, where we performed really well. If our attitude and preparations are right, it doesn't really matter whether we're playing at home or away. In the end, it's always a great feeling to get booed off away from home after putting in a great performance. That can also motivate a player. And I hope that that will happen at the weekend."