Postgame Quotes: “Pleased with the Team’s Performance” | OneFootball

Ole Book (in the mixed zone): “Coming off the UEFA Champions League match, we struggled to get into the game a bit. Paderborn was very aggressive, especially early on. They had a good plan for how to close down the space and put us under pressure. It took us a little while to shake that off and break free from it, but looking at the game as a whole, we had a lot of quality shots and plenty of scoring chances. We improved as the game went on, producing beautiful goals and attacking plays.” Book also chimed in on Konstantinos Karetsas, who was in attendance at SIGNAL IDUNA PARK, saying, “We’re happy that things are looking good and that he'll be able to rejoin training and get back to helping us on the field.”

Niko Kovac (during the press conference): “We got off to a good start with the early goal. Obviously, hat helps — especially after playing in a very hardfought and difficult UEFA Champions League match on Tuesday. It wasn’t easy for the team because Paderborn also played really well, but we didn’t allow anything. In the second half, the game opened up a bit, partly because the opponent’s energy started to wane. We had enough good chances to score more goals I was pleased with the team’s performance over the full 90 minutes. You can’t expect to dominate and put the game out of reach in the first half.”

Nico Schlotterbeck (on Sky): “I really missed it. It was a serious injury, but I’m glad to be back now. The coach asked me yesterday if I felt ready to go. I gave him the thumbs up, and that's when I knew I’d be playing. Our first goal was absolute class, and our second even more so, of course. That’s the Felix we know and want to see. If he keeps playing like this, he can become one of the greats.”

Felix Nmecha (in the mixed zone): “I’m always ready to give it my all, and that’s exactly what I did today. We have a lot of new players. Compared to two years ago, this is a very different team. I'm excited to see what we can accomplish this season.”