After the 2-1 defeat away to VfB Stuttgart, sporting director Sebastian Kehl was joined on media duties by goalkeeper Gregor Kobel plus outfield players Julian Ryerson and Niclas Füllkrug. The match reactions.

Gregor Kobel (in the mixed zone): “It’s difficult to have an explanation when you come straight off the pitch. There were a few things that didn’t go well. We were always too late in the challenges. It turned into a maelstrom: the opposition got braver and braver, they realised something was possible, and we got worse and worse. Stuttgart were the better team from start to finish. There was contact for the second penalty, yes, but he looked for it and tried to engineer it. He completely sprinted into me. It’s madness (editor’s note: in reference to the table); the others are picking up points like crazy.”

Niclas Füllkrug (to BVB TV): “It was a completely deserved defeat by almost too small a margin. Stuttgart were significantly better on the pitch. We were battling throughout the game to somehow get control over the match. We currently have to admit that the teams at the top are currently getting better results than us.”

Julian Ryerson (to BVB TV): “It was a bad game from us with a defeat that hurts. We need to improve in many areas.”

Sebastian Kehl (in the mixed zone): “It was an inexplicably weak performance from us and a deserved win for VfB Stuttgart. It’s brutally disappointing. We cannot perform the way we performed in many areas today, especially in the first half! A lot of players played below their level today. You can’t win a Bundesliga match like that; especially not against a brave, courageous, self-confident Stuttgart team who played a good game of football.” (br)