Kalou: 'Important to show character'
Berlin - After Hertha Berlin came from behind to see off VfB Stuttgart in Friday's 3-2 win, goalscorer Salomon Kalou spoke of his delight at helping the side record just a second victory of the season, while Stuttgart's Moritz Leitner bemoaned his side letting their early lead slip away.
Hertha Berlin
bundesliga.com
has the thoughts of the match's key players...
: It was important to win because we were only on five points and we knew it was very important to take three points before the international break. We worked hard as a team tonight and deserved the victory. I am happy to have scored because as a striker, when your team works hard and the defenders keep themselves back and give you the ball they expect you to score and hopefully I can continue to score for my team. It was important for me to get on the scoresheet and to show character.
I really enjoyed my first game in the starting XI. It’s an outstanding result, and I'm delighted we came back. I needed time to get settled and the injury held me back, but I’m working hard and enjoying being here. This is a good win that takes us in the right direction.
The win feels really good. We gave the fans a great win and go into international break on a positive note. This was probably our best performance of the season. We just need to keep working hard and keep doing what we're doing.
We conceded a goal in the first five minutes, but after that our response was really good. At the beginning of the second half we were under pressure, but the second goal for Salomon was a big relief for us. After beating Wolfsburg it was disappointing to lose to Augsburg, so this was a really important win for us and I'm happy for everyone at the club.
"Home win!!! Important 3 points and a fantastic atmosphere in the #Olympiastadion. Thanks a lot, Hertha fans!"
VfB Stuttgart
It's really frustrating that we let the game slip out of our grasp after taking the lead. We made too many mistakes and pretty much invited them to take shots at our goal. We should have made sure we went into the international break with more peace of mind, but we go home empty-handed and very disappointed.
We were complacent after the goal and let them back into it. We made it easy for them. There aren't many positives to take; it's really frustrating to lose a game like that before the international break.
We only have ourselves to blame for losing this match. We stopped playing after we went 1-0 up. We should have got more from the game.
We made the perfect start, but we let them create too many chances and didn't really win enough tackles. We improved in the second half and found a way back into the game, but we made two individual mistakes and then they were 3-1 up.
