Volland: 'I’ve had a brilliant reception!'

The 23-year old was busy signing autographs after his first training session at Leverkusen and he was happy to pose for selfies before going on to answer questions posted on the Internet. Via Twitter and Facebook we asked for questions to the new signing. Time for another edition of “04 of us, 04 of you.”

Hello Kevin, welcome to Leverkusen. How have you got on at the Werkself?

Kevin Volland: “Brilliantly! You can see straight away there’s a lot of real quality in the squad. It’s obvious not everything goes to plan after a long break but our first training session was very good.”

What was your reception like?

Kevin Volland: “Brilliant. I had a really good feeling when I signed for the club and there’s a great atmosphere here. The club is really well organised, everybody in the squad is friendly and there are a couple of cool lads amongst them. That’s made it very easy to fit in.

Are you looking forward to the pre-season?

Kevin Volland: “Definitely. You can’t wait to get going after a long break and I’m really keen to get back on the pitch again. Of course, pre-season is always tiring but I’m really looking forward to my new role here.”

How did the move to Bayer 04 come about?

Kevin Volland: “It almost happened last season but I opted to stay at Hoffenheim. It was all sorted this year. The discussions with Rudi Völler, Jonas Boldt and the coach were brilliant and I felt at home here from the very first minute. So there was no alternative but to join Bayer 04.”

Fernando Bedetti: Are you looking forward to playing alongside Chicharito?
Kevin Volland: “Of course! I’ve followed Chicha’s career at Manchester United and Real Madrid on TV and last season at Bayer 04 was obviously outstanding. I’ll be happy when he’s here as he’s an incredible player.”

Frederik Sondergaard: Who was your idol?
Kevin Volland: “Zinedine Zidane! His calmness always impressed me. He was a different type of player from me but he is one of the greatest. Otherwise, I liked Ronaldinho when he was on top of his game at Barca. Those two were really good when I was a kid.”

@Bayer04Freak Why number 31?
Kevin Volland: “I kept the number when I moved from 1860 Munich to Hoffenheim and I’ve always done well with it. It brought me a bit of luck as I’m here now. At 1860 I came up from the youth team and there weren’t many numbers available. 31 was the best.”

@baronshinigami Are you already looking forward to the Champions League?

Kevin Volland: “You bet! I’ve always dreamed of playing in it. The crowded fixture list will be something new and that makes the coming weeks of the pre-season even more important.”

Thanks very much for joining in.