Martin Harnik will return to the Weser-Stadion for the seventh time on Sunday. Lots of memories, familiar faces and a very close friend await the 30-year-old. WERDER.DE spoke with Harnik about his retirement from international football and the appeal of this weekend’s home game against Hannover 96.
WERDER.DE: First things first, you’ve retired from the Austria national team along with Zlatko Junuzović. What made you decide to do that? And did you both speak about it beforehand?
Martin Harnik: “It was definitely not a decision against the national team. There were more factors, but a really important point was that it was wearing me out mentally. It was a decision for my physical fitness and for my family. I didn’t speak to Zlatko beforehand, but our reasons for retirement were very similar.”
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.”
WERDER.DE: Niclas Füllkrug is another former Werder player playing for Hannover 96 alongside you. Do you two sometimes talk about your time at the club?
Martin Harnik: “We’ve talked about it quite a few times; after all, we played with several of the same players.”
WERDER.DE: Werder are still waiting for a first league win this season, while you’ve enjoyed a fantastic start to the year so far. What kind of game are you expecting?
Martin Harnik: “I think it’ll be a difficult game. In principle, each game is the one to win for Werder. They have to end this run of bad form soon and that won’t be any different against us on Sunday. The game is very important for us too because we want to maintain the gap to Werder and want to carry on picking up points. We want to continue the momentum we’re enjoying at the moment.”
WERDER.DE: How do you want the future to pan out for Werder?
Martin Harnik: “I hope Werder can pick up some steam and get to safety so that they can concentrate fully on their work, which is important in situations like these.”
