The Bayer Leverkusen midfielder admits of a disappointing first-half of the campaign and is aiming to secure UEFA Champions League football.
Bayer Leverkusen have failed to emulate their performances from last season and struggled throughout the first phase of the campaign for results. Manager Robin Dutt has been under scrutiny for some poor results but one thing that
has satisfied the fans is the UEFA Champions League knock-out stage qualification.
Rolfes, who has been an active member of the team this season, claimed that the team can definitely redeem itself in the second-half and the test starts from the game against http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/1-FSV-Mainz-05-c38166 on Sunday. He admitted that the club’s main
target at this point of the season would be to secure a place in the top-four.
The German international admitted that a place in the UEFA Europa League at the end of the campaign would be a huge disappointment, considering the sensational campaign last term. He stated that Leverkusen would like to face the
likes of Chelsea and Barcelona rather than playing against teams in the Europa League.
“With Mainz starts the reboot. We are far from securing a spot in the Champions League and we want to return. We want to play against http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Barcelona-c38604 next year. Nothing against [Rosenborg] Trondheim or [Metalist] Kharkiv,
but the Europa League is not our goal,” he was quoted as saying in an interview.
Rolfes added that his side has been preparing well for the remainder of the season in the winter break and are determined not to repeat the mistakes. He insisted that Leverkusen just need to achieve the right mix between attack
and defence, which would in-turn work wonders.
“In the first round we were too variable. In my opinion it is important to find the right mix of offensive play and defensive stability and discipline. If we achieve that, we still have every chance of finishing in the top four,”
he concluded.
Werkself are currently in sixth place with 26 points after securing seven wins from the 17 games played thus far. The side will take on FSV Mainz on Sunday at the BayArena to kick-start their second phase of the campaign.
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