Thorup: “It was an exciting game”

Match reaction to the 2-2 draw against Leipzig

FC Augsburg came away with a 2-2 draw against RasenBallsport Leipzig on Saturday afternoon, with Finn Dahmen called into action to save a penalty. Here is all the immediate reaction.

Kristijan Jakić: “It is a bit of a shame that in the end we only came away with a point because I think that we could also have won here today. Personally, I am really pleased to be here. I have felt really at home since my first day and have been welcomed amazingly by the team. It feels like a little family – not only on the pitch, but also throughout the whole club. I want to help the team to achieve its goals and also obviously make a good impression ahead of the EUROs.”

Phillip Tietz: “In terms of playing style, it was a very good performance from us, we can definitely build on this in any case. The FC Augsburg that only played long balls belongs to the past. In addition to that, you can see our mentality, the fact that we came back after going behind once again and didn’t let the goals we conceded set us off course. I am also pleased about my goal because I just wanted to get it on target with my weaker foot, so it’s even nicer that it ended up going in!”

Finn Dahmen: “At the end the game could’ve gone either way, but we also had the win in our grasp. It was definitely a really cool game for the spectators, with it really flowing back and forth throughout. We can be pleased with this performance in any case, even if so soon after the game it’s annoying not to have won. Still, we are on the right path to also be more solid defensively. I hope now that we can win in Mainz. It will be a very special game for me, but once the whistle blows my focus will be fully on getting the three points for us.

Ermedin Demirović: “We should once again that we can hold our own against any team. Managing to come from behind once again speaks to the desire and morale of the whole team. Still, we will keep working hard, also in trying to keep clean sheets. We have put in some good performances in the last few weeks against top teams and we now want to build on this. In the end, a point today was completely deserved.”

Jess Thorup (FC Augsburg head coach): “Before the game, we said that if we want to pick up points then we would need a top performance – and the team achieved that today. We pressed high in the first 30 minutes and went 1-0 ahead, then after two great goals from our opponents we were suddenly behind. But my players kept trying to come back and showed morale and character, and were rewarded for that with the 2-2 scoreline. The last 15 minutes were frenetic because my team wanted to pick up the three points until the very last minute. All in all, it was an exciting game and in the end we picked up a point, which we are a bit disappointed about today, but tomorrow we will be very pleased with. It is a super sign if the players are unhappy immediately after the game following a 2-2 against Leipzig because that shows that we always want to keep improving.”

Marco Rose (RasenBallsport Leipzig head coach): “A fair draw, also according to the statistics. All in all, it was an intense, high-quality Bundesliga game with a lot of running and class. We had control of the game and came back quickly after going 1-0 behind and weren’t underserved in going ahead in the second half. We had the chance to make it 3-1 ourselves, but then conceded an equaliser after a counterattack from our opponents. If we had scored the penalty at the end and picked up three points then I would have talked about a good, grown-up performance against a strong opponent, this is how I have to explain a draw.”