On the day before the game against AC Milan, sporting director Sebastian Kehl spoke about the personnel situation, the opposition and the historic stadium in Milan. He gave the team the following advice: “We have to be alert right from the start.”

Sebastian Kehl on the situation after the Gladbach game:
“We won a match and were successful in the league again. That was an important step for us at the weekend. Now there is great excitement for the game on Tuesday. We’ve earned ourselves the right to go to Milan as the leaders in this group. But we know that we have a tough task ahead of us.”

…the scenario in the group:
“We know the table and of course you look at what is still possible in this group. We know what awaits us. Milan showed in their home match against PSG that they can be very strong. It will be a close one. But the opportunity to qualify for the round of 16 will be in our own hands in both upcoming group games. We’ll go there with that in mind.”

…AC Milan:
“We have followed their last games, their results and their injury situation too. Let’s see what team Milan put on the pitch. But we’re focused on ourselves and unfortunately have one or two issues that we’re carrying with us. Nonetheless, we’re looking forward to it because we can take a real step.”

…the personnel situation:
“Niklas Süle will unfortunately miss out, he’s ill. But Sébastien Haller and Karim Adeyemi are with us again. Marcel Sabitzer is also doing better, he’s with us. We’ll see whether he is okay enough for the game. We will have a good squad there and are well-prepared.”

…the expectations for the opening phase:
“We need to be alert from the beginning. Milan will also want to use the chance to take a big step with a victory. I know the stadium very well. It will be emotionally heated. We know what we can achieve in these two games. We’ve worked hard for it, especially with the two wins against Newcastle. We don’t want to let that be taken away from us now.”

…the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium:
“The stadium has great tradition. I played there once or twice, but I also think back to the 1990 World Cup. All in all, there are a lot of connections to this stadium. We want to write a nice story.”

…the demands of the team in these English weeks:
“That we go into the next weeks very focused, purposeful and ambitious because we know that we can now push things in the right direction in the three competitions. We did that at the weekend, even though not everything was good in that game and we were 2-0 down to begin with. But then we showed our comeback qualities yet again. I want us to show this concentration and focus right from the start. That’s what we’ll need. That’s how we take it step-by-step. We’re not yet thinking about the weekend or the following week, but now it’s about making a statement in this important group in the Champions League. That would also give us momentum for the next weeks.”
Transcribed by Christina Reinke