“It came as a shock”

Ansgar, you seemed to have been having a good season so far and then suddenly we got the news that ‘Knauff needs an operation on his stomach’. Talk us through it…
“The day after the 3-0 win at home to Gladbach, everything was fine and the following day, we had no training. I was at home and around lunchtime, I started to get pains in my stomach that got worse and worse, so in the end, we had to call emergency services. Everything was handled quickly once we got to hospital, thank goodness. I had to have an operation straight away, but they only needed to make a small incision, and that helped me to get back to fitness so quickly. Initially though, it came as a shock.”

It was a serious situation, wasn’t it?
“Yes, something had ended up the wrong way round in my intestines and that meant that things weren’t getting through as they should, including blood flow. The longer something like that goes on, the more complications you can have. I was lucky that the hospital reacted quickly and did the right thing. My fiancée looked after me so well, and my mum, my family and other people around me really gave me the strength I needed. They all played their part in helping me get better and back out onto the pitch so quickly.”

Let’s get back to the sporting side of things. Head coach Albert Riera’s system seems to put a lot of emphasis on wingers. Is that how you see it?
“Yes, absolutely. We play with out-and-out wingers who stretch the opposition back line and also push deep in attack and hopefully get themselves into the danger area. It’s an ongoing process and we can create a lot more good chances than we have done in recent matches. The wings are an important and fundamental part of the way we want to play.”

Has this international break come at the right time before the 2025/26 season enters the home straight?
“It’s a whole new challenge for the players who’ve been called up by their countries, but for everyone else, it’s good to have a few days away from football to switch off, clear your head, think about other things and then to come back with fresh impetus. The whole team, myself included, have clear objectives for the last seven matches. We want to qualify for Europe and we’re all fired up for the last stretch. I’m back to full fitness and I’m going to use the international break to get myself to the best possible level and be able to perform to my full potential.”