With several personnel issues at the back, Jiří Pavlenka has been a safe pair of hands for SV Werder Bremen over the last few weeks, stopping shots and preventing goals, not letting the injury-hit and often-changed team in front of him influence his performances. Speaking to us at WERDER.DE, the Czech international ‘keeper chatted about those defensive changes, preparations for our next game away to FC Schalke 04 and the return of fans.
WERDER.DE: You’ve had to compensate for injuries and absences often as a team in recent times. How difficult is it for you to have a constantly changing defensive line in front of you?
Jiří Pavlenka: “Honestly, it’s difficult to say. We’ve all played together for a long time, so it’s actually not that big of a problem for me. That said, it definitely isn’t an easy task to be playing with different players every game, whether that be through injuries or suspensions. Nevertheless I think we’ve managed well so far.”
WERDER.DE: Do you communicate differently with some players during the game than others?
Jiří Pavlenka: “No, there’s definitely no difference there. All the lads in front of me have enough experience – they know what they have to do.”
WERDER.DE: So, do they speak to you more then?
Jiří Pavlenka: “Yes!“ (laughs)
WERDER.DE: When you look at Schalke, what do you think is the biggest challenge for you in this game?
Jiří Pavlenka: “It’s yet another top clash, which I’m really looking forward to. The game against Schalke is probably the most important game for us this season. We have the quality and we can definitely win this game, but I’m not preparing for it any differently than I would with any other game. I think it’s all about us; ourselves. We need to look at what we can do, and if we do what we have to, then we’ll manage to get the win.”
WERDER.DE: What do you mean, you don’t watch videos of Simon Terodde’s goals every night?
Jiří Pavlenka: “No, I don’t! We’re only concentrating on ourselves, and Schalke have lots more players with bags of quality.”
WERDER.DE: We’re going to be followed to Gelsenkirchen by more than 6,000 Werder fans. How important is it that the fans are back, both at home and away?
Jiří Pavlenka: “It’s just so cool. We’ve been without them for over two years, which has been a real shame - Football without the fans isn’t really football. I think everyone’s happy to have the fans back.”
WERDER.DE: You weren’t able to travel to your national team due to injury last month. How are you doing fitness-wise now?
Jiří Pavlenka: “I was able to travel to the national team, but then I had a bit of a problem with my foot after the Darmstadt game. We spoke to the team doctor and decided that it was best to stay in Bremen and not go to the national team.”
WERDER.DE: Was it so that you could invest all your energy into the rest of the season at Werder?
Jiří Pavlenka: “Yes, exactly, and for me to stay fit and healthy, of course.”
