Full focus on the Champions League, then hopefully a special call | OneFootball

It was good vibes all around in Leipzig yesterday, as around 500 fans turned out in the beautiful sunshine to watch the Red Bulls work through their public training session. As the players wrapped up their routine, Ridle Baku joined us for a bit of question-and-answer.

The Germany international is eagerly anticipating potential confirmation of Leipzig's Champions League qualification on Saturday - and looking to another goal of his, he'll be sure to be checking his phone more often than usual over the next few weeks. A very special call is on the cards for our flying full-back.

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Box-office clash on the Rhine

Everyone at RBL has one thing on their mind right now: Saturday night, Leverkusen away. How are we looking, having made it five wins in a row now? It's a simple task, if not an easy one. Ridle Baku declared what's needed: "Three points will do it, we can get back to where we want to be with that result - in the Champions League next season." Said even more plainly: "We can seal it on Saturday, that'll be job done."

It will of course be far from a walk in the park, that's for certain. Leverkusen also desperately need to win the prime-time encounter to keep their own UCL hopes alive - and they've got the quality to back up their ambitions. "They have incredible individual talent." Regardless, we're determined to make Saturday night all about RB Leipzig. We're in the right kind of form, the patterns of play are becoming second nature, and hopefully everything can come together in the right way this weekend.

Ridle hadn't even considered the fact that we might end the season on a new club points record - that checks out, considering how laser-focused the boys are on their main goal. "It's not out of the question that we win our last five games."

Growing together

Why is it all going so smoothly right now, then? For Ridle, it comes down to the step forward taken by the whole team. "A lot of players have come on a long way, which you might not have expected at the start of the season." That's clear to see week on week now, every time Leipzig stride out onto the pitch. There's more to be done, though: "Now it's all about fine-tuning our game and getting even better at what we're doing. Bit-by-bit, we're determined to grow into one of the top sides in all of Europe."

The Mainz native himself has been on quite the journey, becoming a leader in the team over the last year and a half. He takes responsibility for himself and others, supports the younger players and plays a huge part off the pitch as well. "You grow into a role like that naturally, I don't shy away from it at all," he said.

Much to the contrary, in fact: "It feels great when the boys turn to me, to be honest."

Ready to answer the call

Slowly ticking away in the background is of course the countdown to this summer's World Cup. The possibility of a call-up is obviously on Ridle's mind, but he's not stressing about the subject. "We all have to be patient and wait another couple of weeks," said the defender, seeming relaxed about the whole topic. This May, Germany national team head coach Julian Nagelsmann will announce his final squad for the upcoming competition.

He's recently been in touch with Nagelsmann to discuss his performances. He knows where he stands, then. "What I can influence is how I perform on the pitch." What does that mean in practice? Ridle is fully focused on a strong end to the season with RBL. Everything else can be put to the side for now. It's also true to say, though, that: "Capping it all off with a World Cup call-up would be something special, of course."

There is a general World Cup fever building in the dressing room as well. Particularly, the Austrian trio of Christoph Baumgartner, Xaver Schlager and Nicolas Seiwald are already brimming with excitement. "They have Argentina in their group, and it'll surely be their last chance to face Messi. There's nothing wrong with that," grinned Ridle. "But we still have a job to do at this club. And when that's done and dusted, hopefully we can all enjoy the buzz as we head towards the World Cup."

Warum RBL die Königsklasse erreicht

Abschlussfrage: Warum sind wir auf dem Weg in die Champions League nicht mehr aufzuhalten? Ridle Baku muss nicht lange überlegen: "Weil wir eine Mannschaft sind, die extrem fokussiert ist, die hart arbeitet und an sich glaubt", begründet er seine Zuversicht.

Er ist sicher: Wenn wir diesen Weg weitergehen, belohnen wir uns. Dann kehrt die Champions League zurück nach Leipzig.

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