WERDER.DE: For you, the game against Werder is a game against your former club. Does it still feel special, despite the years that have passed since your Werder days?
Martin Harnik: “Yes, definitely. Werder was a big stepping stone for me in my career and I made my professional debut for the club. But of course a big reason is because a very close friend of mine, Max, plays for Werder. It’s the first time that we'll come up against each other since he’s been at Werder and I've been at Hannover 96 – it is new in that sense and that makes it exciting.”
WERDER.DE: As you’ve already said, your friendship with Max Kruse stretches back to your days together at SC Vier- und Marschlande. Do you stay in regular contact with each other? Do you see each other more often since you’ve come back to northern Germany?
Martin Harnik: “We still have a really close friendship and we do stuff together more often now that we’re living closer to each other. We mostly do stuff with the others from the old club and the boys will be coming to Bremen for the game. We talk almost every day.”