"I know what I need to do!"

Earlier this week, Julian Schieber underwent an operation on his knee. Today he spoke about the procedure, his wellbeing and his comeback aims.

Julian Schieber isn’t the luckiest of footballers. The Hertha attacker forward the bad news last week that due to discomfort in his left knee, he would need to have an operation. It’s now the second procedure on this knee since 2015 when he was diagnosed with cartilage damage. It led to a month-long break and a debilitating rehab program in order to fight his way back to fitness. The powerful forward was back in full force at the start of the current season, and has been a serious option in Pál Dárdai’s plans. He has three goals and one assist of his name so far this season.

The operation now complete, herthabsc.de caught up with the Hertha striker to see how he was getting on.

herthabsc.de: Julian, how are you feeling after the operation?
Julian Schieber: So far I’m doing pretty well. Dr Boesnisch was very happy with the procedure. I will probably return to Berlin at the end of the week and then start my rehab.

herthabsc.de: What went through your mind when you heard you had to have an operation? 
Schieber: I had a bad feeling during my last session before the op, That was then confirmed during a check-up by the club doctor last week. But I was more shocked in 2015. I’m dealing with the injury much better this time, I’m more mature and can judge the situation better. During the rehab last time I learned how best to deal with it and what I need to watch out for.

herthabsc.de: Where do you get the strength for that? 
Schieber: It helps to know that I have already fought back from something like this. I consciously realized how much I enjoy playing football. It should be the same against this time. I want to be back on the pitch as quickly as possible and I will give everything for that. I often think back on good moments, like my Freiburg goal. It’s motivation for me to get back to winning games.

herthabsc.de: What is a realistic time frame for your comeback?
Schieber: Nobody has an answer to that. We’ll have to see how the healing process goes. But I know what I need to do to get back.

herthabsc.de: Despite all this you are still very close to the team. The bittersweet match against Bayern München is a few days behind us, now we look ahead to the next home match…
Schieber: Matches against Bayern are always something special. You prepare a lot and hope that they don’t have their best day. We had our foot in the door from the off on Saturday. The boys fought tooth and nail and pushed themselves to their limits. In the end, another piece of footballing history was written, but unfortunately not in Blue-White. But it was still a point against the best team in the league, and you can also speak about the mentality gain there too. But that game is behind us. Now we want to get three points against Eintracht Frankfurt. We dropped points against them earlier in the season, but this time it’s our turn!