“It's the start of a new phase”

Edmond Tapsoba is one of the pillars of the Bayer 04 team. The defender is now in his seventh season with the Werkself and taking on a new role as a leader on and off the pitch. Talking to Werkself Magazine, the 26-year-old Burkina Faso international explains the increased demands placed on his position within the team, his role as a “big brother” and why the squad’s overhaul is an opportunity for him and the team.

Eddy, you’re going into your seventh season with Bayer 04. Do you now feel Leverkusen is your home?

Tapsoba: “Yes, definitely. The country and the club impressed me right from the start when I arrived here. I was given a very warm welcome and treated very well, so I quickly felt at home. Bayer 04 has become like a second family to me - my professional family. I’ve gained another family, which means a lot to me. I feel a particularly strong connection to the club and the city. I generally feel very comfortable in Germany; people on the street are always friendly and polite. I’ve never felt like a stranger here, and now I feel like a German. I’m very grateful for that.”

You came to Leverkusen at the age of 20. Now you're 26, do you feel you've developed as a person and as a player?

Tapsoba: “First and foremost, I feel much older. I've even discovered some grey hairs [laughs]. But I have really grown as a person and as a player. I have gained a lot of new and important experience. This is also because I played alongside older players who were like big brothers to me. They helped me a lot and had a big influence on me. That was very good for me and my development.”

You are now a key player in a top Bundesliga team, have won titles and play regularly in the UEFA Champions League. Would you have thought that possible when you left Burkina Faso at the age of 18 to join Leixoes's U19 team in Portugal?

Tapsoba: “To be honest, no. When I was playing in Portugal, and later at Vitoria Guimaraes, the Bundesliga seemed unattainable. I watched it a lot on TV and enjoyed it; it was one of my favourite leagues. Even back then, I liked the way football is played here. When I heard that Bayer 04, a really good team, wanted to sign me, I didn't hesitate for a second and just told my agent that I wanted to move and asked him to do everything he could to make the contract happen. Now I can say that I’ve realised my dream, am very happy in Leverkusen and am really looking forward to this season.”

Was there a moment during your time here in Leverkusen when you realised that something was different than before?

Tapsoba: “I quickly noticed that the standards here are very different from those in Portugal. This also applies to the players' lifestyle and professional attitude. When I came to Leverkusen, I took a lot of things more casually. But then you go into the dressing room and see that other players have already been in the gym or are working with personal trainers in their free time. They do everything they can to be fit before the start of pre-season training and, above all, put in a lot of effort to stay fit throughout the season and avoid injuries. I talked a lot with Jonathan Tah back then. He gave me tips and recommendations. I took that to heart. And I felt that I became stronger, improved and hardly had any injuries. That's why I kept it up and am still working very hard on myself.”

Your role has also changed following Jonathan’s departure...

Tapsoba: “Of course, I have to take on more responsibility now. I learned a lot from Jona, and now it's my turn. I try to help the team as best I can, also as one of the leaders. Jona also gave me that advice. We talked about it, and he thinks now is the right time for me to take the next step – also as one of the voices for the team.”

In addition to Jona, the Bender brothers also influenced you in this regard. You are now an experienced player who young newcomers look up to and who serves as a role model. How do you feel about your changed role?

Tapsoba: “When I joined the team back then, the Bender brothers were experienced players. They were leaders who talked to us and served as role models. All the young players looked up to them. So for me, it's a big step to become a role model for the younger players myself and to take on even more responsibility on the pitch. But I'm internalising this role more and more. I've been talking a lot on the pitch lately, giving advice. I read the game more than I used to when others took over. I’m now part of the link between the coach and the players and will continue to talk to the coach a lot to get a lot of feedback and improve in this role. But I feel that it is now my job to be there for the young players in particular. Our new team is very young, and I will do my best to live up to the expectations placed on me.”

How do you feel about that?

Tapsoba: “I feel responsible and am excited to move up the hierarchy. Until now, I've always been more in the background at Leverkusen, but now I'm stepping out. Now I have to stand up for the team. It's the start of a new phase – for me personally and for the club.”

Would you like to change in any way? Speak more, speak louder, speak more German...

Tapsoba: “I'm still waiting for the right moment to do an interview entirely in German [laughs]. But that will happen soon. Of course, language skills are also part of development, but I'm making great progress in that area. Apart from that, I don't want to change as a person. I’d rather add something to my personality, also as a player. We can all learn something new every day to become better players and also better people. And I feel that there was a part of me that wasn't quite mature yet, which I now want to add to in order to fulfil my new role even better, especially on the pitch. Apart from that, I've long been someone who was very important for the dressing room and connected all the players. Now it's time to develop further on the pitch. I also want to score more goals, but that should be possible with my current rate of scoring [laughs].”

A lot of young players have joined, including others of African descent like yourself. Do you feel a special connection to them because you can relate to their situation?

Tapsoba: “Yes, I’m now like an older brother to them because I know exactly how much I was helped back then. We come from the same continent and have a similar culture. I know how they think, how they feel in certain situations and what challenges they have to overcome. That's why I try to help them as best I can, so that they gain confidence and feel at home here. It's really difficult for a young player to come to Germany, separated from his family and live here alone. So I'll try to be the older brother who looks after the younger ones.”

What about communication? Is English still the language used in the dressing room, as in previous years?

Tapsoba: “English is generally spoken, as it’s the language that almost everyone understands. In order to rebuild team spirit, it’s important that we can communicate and understand each other. I also speak Spanish with Christian Kofane sometimes. However, most young African players speak French, so in certain situations it is easier to communicate in French. But it’s important that when other players join us, we speak English again so that everyone understands each other and feels comfortable.”

Do you feel more pressure now than you did in your early years at Leverkusen? Success has raised expectations – and with them, the expectations placed on the leading players...

Tapsoba: “The pressure is definitely greater than it was back then. We’ve shown that we can win titles. Even before this season, the club invested heavily again to put a top team on the pitch. The fans expect a lot from us, so we have to satisfy them. The situation is not so easy at the moment, as we had to do without a few injured players during pre-season and the squad was quite small. But we're building something new here, you can feel it. It may take a little while for us to reach 100 percent, but I think the development in pre-season was very good and we're close to 80 percent. So we're still a little way off, but that's normal with so many changes. But we're confident and ready for the season.”

Many of the new players are still very young, are considered top talents and want to prove themselves in the Bundesliga. How is the transition within the team going?

Tapsoba: “We’ve obviously lost some important players from the past and also have a new coach. Flo, Jerry, Granit, Jona and Lukas leave a big gap, no question about it. Building a new team of this calibre takes time, but that's our job now, and it's fun. But to be honest, we don't have time to think about it, and there's no point in mourning the loss of players. We have to give everything to be ready for the new season because we know that the fans expect a lot from us and we want to be at the top of the league right from the start. We’re making progress every week and our new signings bring a lot of quality with them. The fact that our basic style of play hasn't changed significantly makes it easier. The new players need to adapt to the style quickly, and then I'm convinced that we'll achieve good results very quickly and ignite a new fire.”

You mentioned the new coach, Erik ten Hag. Pre-season training is now over. What’s your impression of him?

Tapsoba: “Very good. He is a prominent coach who’s won titles everywhere he’s worked. I already had a good impression of him because I’d heard a lot about his work. He coached two of my friends from Burkina Faso at Ajax and goalkeeper André Onana, who I know very well personally, in Amsterdam and at Manchester United. I spoke to him a lot, and he told me a lot about his daily work with the coach. He believes that Erik ten Hag can make me one of the best defenders in the world. I'm looking forward to working with him. Of course, he has his own ideas and there are differences in his approach compared to Xabi Alonso. But we quickly got used to it and are trying to adapt and implement everything. As a professional, it's part of the job to adapt to new coaches and ideas. But it's also important to support him and do everything we can to make him feel comfortable and make his daily work as easy as possible.”

Tactically, you still mostly play with a back three. However, Ten Hag has usually played with a back four in his previous clubs. Which variation do you feel most comfortable with?

Tapsoba: “The back three isn't my personal favourite, but I think the team is more secure when we play that way. And I feel comfortable in any position there, even though left in a back three is my favourite position. We’re stronger defensively in this system and also have a good balance between defence and attack. Since we’re so strong in attack that we can always score goals, it's good to have a stable defence as a foundation. That's why we feel very secure in this system; the risk of being outnumbered at the back is very low.”

What are your hopes for the new season after all the changes?

Tapsoba: “As a team, our goal is the same as it’s been for the past two years: we want to win titles. The team may have been reshaped, but every player brings a lot of quality to the table. So for us, it's about quickly building something new so that we can soon win something for the trophy cabinet again.”

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