“I’ll definitely miss a lot of people” – Xaver Schlager says farewell | OneFootball

Farewell to a team player

Xaver leaves Leipzig with 108 competitive appearances, five goals, a DFB-Pokal winners’ medal and a Supercup title to his name. More than anything, though, he leaves as someone held in huge esteem throughout the club and as a selfless teammate on and off the pitch. His arrival in the summer of 2022 proved to be a real coup for us.

Even after his final home game for the Red Bulls against St. Pauli, where his goal to make it 1-0 had set us on the way to victory, his focus was on the bigger picture: “The most important thing is that we won today and made the Champions League. That’s always the main thing you want to achieve, so I’m absolutely delighted.”

“I’d say it was just a really nice way to finish. A great farewell game, a great final home game, and a very fitting way to sign off,” Xaver said, looking back on the end of the season.

On his farewell, he added: “I want to say thank you for four wonderful years. Thank you to the fans – there was always a brilliant atmosphere in the stadium. We experienced some amazing times, some amazing Champions League nights, won trophies and had less good days too. Even then, the team was always supported by the fans. That support really was something special.”

“They were tough times”

Xaver Schlager leaves as an important figure at the club. A consummate professional, he stood out for his tough-tackling nature, his ball-winning ability and his tactical discipline. The central midfielder could always be relied upon. His start in summer 2022 did not quite go to plan, however, as he later admitted: “It was difficult. I came here and kind of realised quite early on that I wasn’t really playing a role. Of course I questioned myself and thought: Was this the right move?”

Xaver did not let that knock him off course and worked his way into the starting line-up. His relentless willpower was something we could always count on too, although it was tested more often than anyone would have liked. The 28-year-old tore his syndesmosis ligament in his first season, before suffering a cruciate ligament injury the following campaign. In his third year at Cottaweg, knee problems and a muscle injury also kept him out for extended spells.

“There were moments when I thought: I don’t know if my body will hold up again. Sometimes it took longer than I would have liked, and there were setbacks again and again. They were tough times,” said Xaver, reflecting on those challenging periods. He is glad to have found some stability again this year.

“I’ll definitely miss a lot of people”

The Austria international made 26 appearances in his last season at the club, scoring three goals and setting up one more. His goal against St. Pauli in his final home game for the Red Bulls took him to three goals for the campaign – a new personal best. In three of his four years with RBL, he helped us qualify for the Champions League.

“RB Leipzig is a club that helped me develop, that gave me big opportunities, where I won trophies, and I’m leaving with an entirely positive feeling,” said Xaver, who has another career highlight ahead of him at the World Cup with Austria.

Xaver will therefore not have to go too long without his Austrian RBL teammates Christoph Baumgartner and Nicolas Seiwald. “Nici and Baumi won’t disappear from my life. We’ll see each other with the national team at least every two or three months. There are others I maybe won’t see quite so often now. But we’ll have to see where my journey takes me. I’ll definitely miss a lot of people.”

We’ll miss you too, Xaver – hopefully we’ll see you back at the Red Bull Arena soon!

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