Ranos: “I’m hugely excited to feel the atmosphere here for the first time”

Grant-Leon Ranos speaks about his first impressions at the Foals, his time at the training camp and playing at BORUSSIA-PARK for the first time during Saturday’s friendly against HSC Montpellier (15:30 CEST).

Grant-Leon, you’ve been at Borussia for a few weeks now. What are your first impressions of the team and the club?

Ranos: The first weeks were very intense. I met new people every day; that was very exciting. It’s like a family here. I’ve fitted in very well with my teammates. The manager and the staff are very nice. You can feel the size of the club and also the passion from the fans. We know how important to them this club is. I’m as excited as ever to be at Borussia and be able to experience it all.

You haven’t yet missed any training sessions and you scored your first goal for Borussia at the tournament in Heimstetten against 1860 München. How do you evaluate your personal pre-season so far?

Ranos: You really learn something new in every training session. The coaching staff and my teammates help me a lot and always have a friendly ear when I have a question. Altogether the preparation has been going very well. We’ve won every friendly except for one draw. We’re getting better and better as a team and improving our chemistry.

How much could you personally use the training camp to get to know your teammates better and how much has the time on the pitch brought you closer together as a team?

Ranos: The training camp has definitely brought us closer together. The many conversations while eating together, the activities on and off the pitch and the different team-building exercises have done us a lot of good as a team and helped us all to get to know each other better.