Hungarians Abroad: I never wanted to overleap myself – Roland Sallai

Roland Sallai has scored nine goals in the German topflight so far (Photo: AFP)

– Was the jubilee bittersweet?
– Obviously it's not the result we expected, but before the match we knew what quality Leipzig represents, told our portal Freiburg's forward, Roland Sallai a day after the 3-0 defeat against Leipzig and his 50^th Bundesliga match. – We didn't have much chance to score goals as we barely had goal scoring opportunities. The guests deserved the win. I hope we'll play better against Mainz.

– Even if not with the results, but you can be satisfied with the half-hundred matches. What does the jubilee mean to you?
– On one hand it's a good feedback on my performance so far. No player in the German topflight is given much chance if he doesn't deserve it. I'm glad I was able to use these opportunities; I learned a lot, and I hope that I can thrive in the next 50 matches. On the other hand, I hope this is just the beginning. My next goal is a 100 games, then a 150 and then 200. I know I have to work a lot to reach them, but I'm the type of person who always wants more.

– If you don't have a serious knee injury, you might get this far sooner.
– Indeed, but I believe that everything happens for a reason. An injury can happen any time, and unfortunately, I had to undergo surgery at the beginning of my Bundesliga career. There were times when I was down, but I always stood up and I got back to the team after each injury. I can draw strength from this at any time now because I know I can push myself to reach my goals even if those goals include a hundred topflight games or getting into a starting lineup after an injury.

– During your years at the academy in Felcsút, you practiced alone in the pouring rain after training and did some extra work. Where would you be now if you rather stayed in the warm room?
– I wouldn't be here for sure. As I've said before, talent and the knowledge or natural ball feeling we're born are not enough themselves. Along these, a lot of work and sacrifice are needed to get a player to the next level. I was always a perfectionist, I wanted to get to the highest level possible even as a kid, and I hope I haven't reached the summit of my career yet.

– What did your father, Tibor who is a former Hungarian League player, and your uncle, 55-time national team player Sándor say about this round number?
– They called me before the game and congratulated me on it, but honestly, I didn't want to make a big deal out of this occasion. If someone's aiming for 200 games, he shouldn't celebrate at 50.

– The guiding thread of Nemzeti Sport's Sunday memo was how consciously you've been building your career.
– I'm glad it looks the same from the outside too. When it comes to changing clubs, I always put my improvement first. When I signed with Cyprus after Palermo in Serie A, many thought it was a bad choice even when APOEL was in the Champions League main round. However, I was confident that time would justify me, and fortunately it did. I never wanted to overleap myself; I tried to go up step by step.

– Which footballer do you consider your role model?
– I was impressed with Andrés Iniesta's game before, but since he left Barcelona, I don't have an ultimate favorite. I try to watch as many top teams as possible and learn from the best footballers.

– Alright, then I'd like to hear four names. Who do you consider as the Bundesliga's best goalkeeper, defender, midfielder and forward?
– It's not easy... I'm hesitating between goalkeepers Manuel Neuer and Péter Gulácsi; it's not a coincidence that their teams are the top two on the table. Anyway, I'm going to give “Gula” this title. Among the defenders I would mention another Leipzig player, Dayot Upamecano, then Munich's Joshua Kimmich as the best midfielder, and I'll have to choose between Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland as best forwards. Based on the goalscoring list, Bayern's forward should be the frontrunner, but because I'm in the younger generation along with the Norwegian striker who's been producing these incredible numbers so early in his career, let's go with Haaland.

– On the other hand, you'll meet Robert Lewandowski on the pitch soon as the World Cup qualifiers start with the Hungary-Poland match at the end of March. How often do you think about the clash?
– Sometimes I do think about it, but until then we still have the Bundesliga matches against Mainz and Augsburg. These two games are the most important ones right now, but if we're over them, I'll shift my focus towards the national team.

BUNDESLIGA
ROUND 24
Schalke–Mainz 0–0
Eintracht Frankfurt–VfB Stuttgart 1–1(Kostic 69., and Kalajdzic 68. )
Hoffenheim–Wolfsburg 2–1(Baumgartner 8., Kramaric 41., and Weghorst 23.)
Borussia Mönchengladbach–Bayer Leverkusen 0–1(Schick 76.)
Freiburg–RB Leipzig 0–3(Nkunku 41., Sörloth 64., Forsberg 79.)
Hertha–Augsburg 2–1(Piatek 62., Lukebakio 87. – penalty, and Bénes 2.)
Bayern München–Borussia Dortmund 4–2(Lewandowski 26., 44. – penalty, 90., Goretzka 88., and E. Haaland 2., 9.)
Köln–Werder Bremen 1–1(J. Hector 83., and Sargent 66.)
Arminia Bielefeld–Union Berlin 0–0

(Translated by Vanda Orosz)