His injury troubles behind him, Bayern Munich's Javi Martinez has barely missed a kick in 2016/17. - © © gettyimages / Alexander Hassenstein
His injury troubles behind him, Bayern Munich's Javi Martinez has barely missed a kick in 2016/17. - © © gettyimages / Alexander Hassenstein

Bayern Munich's Javi Martinez: 'The atmosphere in the Bundesliga is incredible'

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Spain international Javi Martinez has seen and done it all with Bayern Munich since swapping the Basque Country for Bavaria in summer 2012.

A debut season treble was just the start for the 28-year-old defensive specialist, who believes good old fashioned hard work is one of the key contributing factors to his and Bayern's continued success.

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bundesliga.com: Javi Martinez, when you arrived at Bayern in 2012 you were the most expensive signing in the club's history. Did a lot of pressure come with that?

Javi Martinez: I didn't view it like that but as something that gave me a great sense of satisfaction.

Watch: Javi Martinez scored his first goal of the season against Cologne on Matchday 23

bundesliga.com: Are you a born winner? You have won the Bundesliga, DFB Cup, UEFA Champions League and FIFA Club World Cup with Bayern, as well as the World Cup and European Championship with Spain…

Martinez: I've had great team-mates. In all the teams I've played in, we've always been friends too. Obviously here I spend most time with the guys who speak Spanish. Claudio Pizarro was my first friend here.

bundesliga.com: Why are Bayern always so consistently better than their opponents?

Martinez: The main thing is that we work very hard. We've got a fantastic squad but the people behind the scenes also work very well and bring in the best players to the club.

bundesliga.com: The injury you suffered in 2013 was the worst you have ever suffered in you career. How do you stay positive when you're not able to do what you love doing?

Martinez: It was the toughest period of my life. I learned to accept what the doctors told me. Previously, if they said I needed to be on the sidelines for two weeks for a minor injury, I'd come back much sooner even though the pain hadn't completely gone. I realised that was a dangerous attitude for me to have.

- © gettyimages / Christof Koepsel/Bongarts