This year marks Konstantinos Mavropanos' second season on loan to Stuttgart. Looking at the convincing play of the 23-year-old, it is no surprise that Stuttgart has gone to such great lengths to extend his lease. In this interview, the Greek international talks about his recent goals, the team's team spirit and compares Stuttgart to his home team, Arsenal.
How do you rate this season so far?
Mavropanos: "Personally, I think this season is going to get better and better, I feel like I'm playing better than last season because everyone on the team supports me and it's very helpful for me, so that kind of environment allows you to play better. ”
What do you think of your goals?
Mavropanos: "I'm playing against Kempf and he's scored three goals so far, and it's certainly a really good thing to score for the team because I always do my best to help the team and when we get a good result from the goals, it's definitely good. ”
Can you tell the story of playing as a striker when you were a kid?
Mavropanos: "Of course, I think everyone changes their stance when they're young, for me I played a few years ago, but by no means in the professional sense. ”
Your abilities have improved completely, what is the reason for this?
Mavropanos: "Of course, that's what you have to do every day in training, there's more space on the pitch, you can change your position when you're facing different game situations, that's why I scored three goals. ”
More goals this season than in any previous season?
Mavropanos: "It's true that it's been a long time since my last season when I scored, at Arsenal I lacked the luck to score, but fortunately now I have more goals and it also helps the team. ”
How do you see Stuttgart this season?
Mavropanos: "We didn't start well, but we still have 26 games and we're getting better in each game, which is what you can see from the results of the last two league rounds, I think we worked very hard and we're confident that we can get up in the table. ”
Is Mavropanos a monster?
Mavropanos: "Off the pitch, I'm a really nice guy, but on the pitch, of course I show my passion and everything, that's the DNA of the Greeks, that's how we play on the pitch. ”
Would you like to be a team leader?
Mavropanos: "It's not something I can decide, it's something that the coach decides, when the coach decides who is the captain on the field, we have to listen to him. ”
What is the Greek DNA of Mavropanos?
Mavropanos: "How can this be explained?" It's about passion and determination, of course, and how strong your desire to survive on the pitch is. ”
About your speed and power!
Mavropanos: "Of course, everyone is talented in some places, but if you don't train and develop them, if you don't improve some other aspects, of course, it's also related to my position on the field, I have to have them. ”
How do you see confidence in the game?
Mavropanos: "Yeah, because as a defender, that's the style of play we want, and when you win confrontations and you go to the top with headers, of course you get confidence so you can play more easily in the game, that's part of our game, so it's important to win those confrontations. ”
What are your expectations for goals scored this season?
Mavropanos: "If we can reach last season's ranking or higher, that's the perfect one." Otherwise, we'll have to see where the team can reach and then think about what we can do. ”
What are your thoughts on the Bundesliga?
Mavropanos: "I think the Bundesliga is the second best league after the Premier League, of course I think the Premier League is the best league in the world, and then the Bundesliga because it's really intense, very similar to the Premier League, the players here are really talented, the young players are also experienced and it's getting harder and harder every season. ”
Talk about how it feels to play in front of the fans again!
Mavropanos: "I think it's the coolest thing to do in front of my fans on the pitch, and the tickets are sold out, is there a better feeling than that?" ”
Will you choose to stay after your rental contract expires?
Mavropanos: "It's not easy to say at the moment, but I have to admit that the environment, the people and the club are great, but it's too early to say this, I still have an eight-month contract and I don't have much to say now. ”
How do you see team spirit in Stuttgart?
Mavropanos: "Of course, team spirit is very important, it is something that a team must have, otherwise a team cannot successfully achieve its goals, without team spirit, it is difficult for us to succeed. ”
What do you think of the manager?
Mavropanos: "I like the way he speaks and the way he directs us, he helps us to help the team. ”
Who seems to be the toughest teammate you can deal with?
Mavropanos: "For me, it's Silas, because last season we had a lot of confrontation in training, his way of playing is too difficult to deal with, and it's true that we have too many potential players with great skills. ”
About Stuttgart and Arsenal!
Mavropanos: "In the dressing rooms of both teams, I feel very familiar, and the way everyone talks to you and meets you is similar, and this time you feel like you've been here for many years on the first day you came here. ”
Where are you at Arsenal's back line?
Mavropanos: "No, I didn't get too many opportunities, I played chambers once, I played Murtesack for 20 minutes, in addition to that, I played David Luiz and Papastathopoulos once, and I came to Arsenal earlier than Salibba, Gabriel and Ben White. ”
How did you perform in the Battle of Mertesack?
Mavropanos: "It was the last game of his career, so his emotions were probably a little bit agitated and it was special for me because it was also Wenger's last game at the Emirates Stadium and it was probably the best moment of my career so far. ”
How do you see playing for the Greek national team?
Mavropanos: "It's a great honour for every footballer to play for their country, so it's also an honour for me when I have the opportunity to play. It's a very special thing when you're playing for the national team because you think about your family, your country, and everyone in that country. ”
What do you think of the Greek national team?
Mavropanos: "I think we're a good team because like you said, we have a young team and young players. Of course we also have experienced players pressing the squad and most of the players on the team are very young. I think we're on a good trajectory and I'm sure soon we can have another World Series. ”
Where did you first start playing football?
Mavropanos: "When I was 5-6 years old, I first started playing in ApolloMenis in Greece. ”
Is there a coach who has had a huge impact on you?
Mavropanos: "I think it was a coach when I was a kid, and you were often exposed to different coaches who had some different philosophies and always learned something from them to make yourself better. ”
Talk about how you felt when you moved to Arsenal!
Mavropanos: "I remember when I went to London on January 1st and I couldn't believe I was going to sign for Arsenal, it was really special for me. ”
Coming from Greece to a new country, how do you adapt?
Mavropanos: "Yeah, it looks hard, but it's not hard for me because as I said, Arsenal are a very familiar club and from the first day I came here, the people around me have been very good to me. ”
How big a role has your family played in your career?
Mavropanos: "They always support me, they don't want to oppose me playing football, I said I want to be a professional player, they always follow me, trust me and I hope I can make them proud. ”
What do you think of the goal against Hoffenheim?
Mavropanos: "First I looked at the opponent's position and I couldn't go straight to him, and then I found that I seemed to get a chance because I didn't see any of the members defending on that side, and that's why I was in that position, it was an easy area to score, and in the end I finished the goal because I made the run ahead of time. ”
What about goal against Borussia Moncheng?
Mavropanos: "When Malmusz passed the ball to me, I had a lot of room to touch the tweaks and I think it was the best chance to shoot. Of course I'm not used to it because I don't play every game involved in shooting, but in that case, I think shooting is the best option. ”