Boateng: "About time I scored"
Munich - After grabbing the winner in FC Bayern Munich's hard-fought win over Fortuna Düsseldorf, finally has a Bundesliga goal he can call his own.
It was the defender's 72nd attempt on goal on his 130th Bundesliga appearance, but it was well worth the wait in more ways than one, as bundesliga.com finds out...
Question: Jerome Boateng, how does it feel to finally score your first Bundesliga goal?
Boateng: It feels great. It was about time I scored. I've always worked on my finishing in training and today it finally happened - it was perfect. Yesterday it was my kid's birthday and it's my dad's today, so I'm dedicating this goal to them. They're three great reasons to celebrate, but I'm also really pleased with the team's performance after twice coming back from a goal down.
Question: After the goal, you signalled towards Jupp Heynckes. What was that about?
Boateng: Simple: the coach told me he'd take the team out for something to eat if I scored this season. I wanted to remind him.
Question: Your eighth win from eight since the winter break wasn't easy. What did you make of Bayern's performance?
Boateng: For the fans it was really entertaining. We showed another side to our game. We conceded twice in a Bundsliga game for the first time this season. We can't be doing that. We lost our shape too easily for the two goals.
Question: What was different compared to all the other games so far this season?
Boateng: In the first half, we gave three or four-hundred percent because we wanted to get in front. In the second half, we saw a ridiculous amount of the ball, but didn't do much with it. It definitely wasn't our best performance, but we showed our quality. We have what it takes to turn those sort of games around.
Question: How important was the win in terms of confidence ahead of the second leg of the UEFA Champions League clash with Arsenal FC?
Boateng: As a team, we showed great spirit. The way we came back is important in the context of Wednesday's game against Arsenal. We're feeling positive and full of confidence.
Tim Tonner reporting from the Allianz Arena
