It was just over six months ago that Maximilian Eggestein signed his first professional contract with SV Werder. Three months earlier, the youth prodigy had already made his professional debut for the club at just 17 years and 356 days of age. The midfielder was subbed onto the pitch in the 83rd minute of Werder's 4-0 win over SC Paderborn, and so became the second-youngest player ever to represent the Green-Whites. Eggestein has put in a number of excellent performances during this pre-season campaign, even making starts against top sides FC Sevilla and West Ham United. "I can't believe how quickly everything has happened," said the youngster, looking back on the past few weeks.

The midfielder isn't feeling any kind of pressure despite training full-time with the Werder first team; he's enjoying every aspect of the experience and is soaking up every bit of advice like a sponge. Maximilian Eggestein is living the dream - the dream that everyone has of turning their hobby into a career. "Lots of my friends have just started apprenticeships or they've gone off to university. I don't look at football as a career, but rather still as my hobby - and it would make me incredibly happy to be able to continue with this hobby for a long time," said the talented playmaker.

The son of former footballer Karl Eggestein, who made 36 appearances for TSV Havelse in the 2. Bundesliga, transferred from his father's former club to the Werder U17s in 2011, where he was then coached by none other than Viktor Skripnik. Eggestein remembers how the current Werder manager played a vital role in his development. "He knows me very well; he was my coach in the U17s and U19s. I know exactly what he wants from his players and I'm familiar with his preferred style of play. That's obviously a big help now, in the first team," said the Hannover-born midfielder.

Speaking of the first team, Eggestein has been in and around the Werder squad for almost a year and has been making excellent progress. "My relationship with my teammates is getting better and better. At the start I was very withdrawn and quiet in the dressing room whereas now I have a lot of fun with other first teamers like Clemens Fritz or Zlatko Junuzovic," said the youngster, who has grown up a lot in the last few months. "I've just finished my Abitur [German equivalent of A-Levels], then we achieved promotion with the U23 side and I moved into my first flat on my own. I've definitely begun a new chapter in my life. I'm now faced with a number of new responsibilities - I have to cook for myself, do my own washing. All those things were always taken care of for me before, and of course it takes a bit of getting used to. I have to admit that I'm not the best chef in the world, but I'm hoping to get a few tips off my mother!" laughed Eggestein, who previously lived at the Werder academy with other youth players.

His younger brother also lives there - Johannes Eggestein currently represents the Green-Whites at U19 level, after already representing the U19s last season as an U17 player, scoring six goals in just two games. Maximilian refused to be drawn on whether he had thought about lining up alongside his brother for the first team one day. "Johannes is with the U19s at the moment, and I've not been amongst the first team squad for long. We'll have to see where our paths take us," said the older Eggestein, who is still taking everything in his fledgling career step by step.

The midfielder knows that he still has a lot of time to establish himself as a Bundesliga player, and he's in no rush. "I don't put any pressure on myself ahead of games, and I don't tell myself it's crucial that I play. If someone gets into that frame of mind whilst they aren't playing, it's hard not to get more and more disappointed each week. A young player should be happy to get the opportunity to play, and he should treat every moment as an important lesson and experience," said the 18-year-old.

After an extremely positive pre-season that has brought with it many such new experiences, Eggestein is looking forward to finally getting started with the competitive campaign. "Pre-season went very well, not just for the team but also for me personally. I hope that I can build on my good performances over the last few weeks during the season itself. It's something else to run out onto the pitch at the Weser Stadion in front of 42,000 fans, instead of playing in the Regionalliga or 3. Bundesliga in front of just 1,000 people," said Eggestein. The youngster is also aware that a lot more work lies ahead of him before he is able to truly compete in the Bundesliga. "There's still a long way to go before my dream truly becomes a reality."