Irvine: "This result is very important for the team"
Friday, 22. July 2022, 23:45 Uhr
After the hard-fought 2-2 draw at Hannover 96, the players expressed their satisfaction with the way they salvaged a point in second-half time added on.
Timo Schultz: “It was an exciting game with two teams who wanted to play attractive attacking football, as you can see from the stats. I think we deserved the draw in the end, but when you get the goal in the 95th minute there’s an element of luck involved, too. Hannover showed they’re a good side who have already started to gel. We’re happy to take a point from the game, as well as a few points we have to work on. In general, four points from two games is a decent return.”
Jackson Irvine: “We kept calm when we went behind and carried on playing football. Last season we were a bit hectic on occasions. I went into the season hoping to score more goals, of course. This result is very important for the team.”
Igor Matanovic: “Last-minute goals are always special and an awesome feeling. It shows you should never give up and also shows the kind of team we are. The lads who came on showed they were up for it. There were chances at both ends. We fought hard for the point and deserved it in the end. Jojo did that very well in front of goal.”
Marcel Hartel: “A point is better than losing, of course. We started the game well but dropped off after taking the lead. Whatever the reasons were, we’ll have to analyse it. We picked up again in the second half and deserved to take in the end, so we’re reasonably satisfied. It’s a good feeling to secure a point in time added on.”
Johannes Eggestein: “When I'm in the box my instinct is always to go for goal and so I didn't hesitate. I made a good contact and the keeper went the other way. All in all, it was a decent effort. I’m pleased we took the point. My goal wouldn’t have been worth anything if we’d lost today. I still think there are lots of areas where we can do better, though.”
Stefan Leitl (Hannover coach): “I’m obviously not so happy about giving away the win in the last second. My team put in an excellent performance against an excellent team. We fell behind to their first shot, but you saw we’ve taken another step forward and are able to create chances. We were lucky to get the equaliser, and in the second half neither side was very tidy on account of the intensity of the game. We had much the better chances, though, which is why I don’t entirely share Schulle’s opinion. I think we were closer to victory because of the chances in the second half."
Photos: Witters
