Johan Bakayoko: "Anything is possible"

With two goals to show for his first five Bundesliga outings and Leipzig back in the top-four equation ahead of a trip to Borussia Dortmund this weekend, life couldn't be much better for the 22-year-old Belgian winger...

Having joined Leipzig this summer, how would you describe your time and your experience at the club so far?

Johan Bakayoko: "Everything was very positive from the moment I arrived. I think they had a really clear plan for the team and about how we were going to perform under a new coach. Everything was new. It was not as if I was the only new player; the staff were also new, so it felt like we were going in a new direction. Up to now, it’s been very good, actually. I’m very happy with the way we perform as a team and the way we are starting to get to know each other as teammates, but with the staff as well."

Watch: Bakayoko in focus

Ole Werner took over as head coach in the summer. How do you see him and his work?

Bakayoko: "I think he came with a strong plan. It’s also not easy, I think, for a coach to come somewhere where everything is going to change and you are part of it - and you are maybe the most important person at the moment to change things. And I think he does very well, and he communicates well. We train well. We have a strong plan for every game, and that’s his job, and he does it well."

Five games have been played. How do you assess the start of season, especially the turnaround after the devastating loss in Munich, with now four consecutive wins.

Bakayoko: "For us - for me personally - that game against Bayern was not a good moment, but it was a moment that we could reflect on. It also helped the team to see where we lack some things; where we have to improve things. And I think we changed for the better. The strong performances afterwards and four wins in a row are only the beginning, and we hope to have more. I think anything is possible, because if you see the way we play in every game - even if you see the way we play from the start until now - it’s much better. Even on the pitch, we know each other better. The plan is also better executed by the players. So I think anything is possible."

You've scored twice in the Bundesliga already. How's the season going for you?

Bakayoko: "I always try to improve. I think every game I can improve, and every game I have good moments and bad moments. If I see every game on its own, I think the first game against Bayern was really difficult to create things. I did what I could do. I could do better, of course, and as a team we struggled, but we found a way to deal with it.

"Against Mainz, I think we started also very - let’s say not 'bad', but we could do better. And I think before the first half we scored an important goal. Personally, I tried to help, to do the things I’ve always done from my youth. The game before, I think, was the 3-1 win [against Cologne]. Personally, the way I saw the game was positive. I think we could see that the team had a great structure, and we had a strong plan, and we did very well the whole game.

"And against Wolfsburg it was the same. I think we created a lot of chances; defensively we were very strong. We could have conceded, but we didn’t. I think Peter [Gulácsi] was also very good. And I tried to help the team, and I could receive the ball from Rômulo. And I think I scored a goal that was important. So that’s how to rate my performances until now."

Watch: Bakayoko was a nominee for September's Rookie of the Month

Describe your first Bundesliga goal against Mainz...

Bakayoko: "I think it was a moment that we had the ball for a bit longer. I saw the ball from Bonzo [Ezechiel Banzuzi]. I saw, like, in my eyes, a one-v-one. I played it. I passed the man, [Ridle] Baku made a great run, and yeah, it opened the space for me to go inside, and then I shot."

You scored again against Wolfsburg last week. Talk us through that...

Bakayoko: "Against Wolfsburg, yeah, a great press. We had a great press. I think Castello [Lukeba] won the ball, played to Rômulo. Rômulo opened it up, and then saw me in front; he played it to me, and also then I had a one-v-one, and I did the same. And, yeah, that was a good goal."

You were voted Man of the Match for that performance. Does that mean anything to you?

Bakayoko: "No, actually, for me, I’m not looking for that. Actually, it’s also nice to receive those kinds of things, but for me the most important thing is to win the games, because when you win the games, then you get the awards afterwards; that is more important than any one moment. Just one moment of being Man of the Match - there is way more than this."

Watch: Bakayoko's golden goal against Mainz

Having a look at the season - what are your goals with Leipzig? Qualifying for the UEFA Champions League?

Bakayoko: "Of course. I think it’s maybe the main goal as a club to reach that again. I saw in the past years that we always were there and had a great story there. So that’s maybe one of the reasons the club bought me - to help reach that again - and that’s also my target."

Leipzig play Dortmund on Saturday. What are your expectations?

Bakayoko: "I see it like every other game. I think it’s a big game, but like I said, three points is three points - it doesn’t matter who we play against. If you see, for me, the way I started the game against Wolfsburg - the feeling I had to start a game - I hope for the same. I hope going to Dortmund is no different, because at the end of the day everything is new for me in the Bundesliga, and I’m looking forward to every game."

How would you describe your style of play?

Bakayoko: "I think I’m a winger that can do everything. I think I’m very strong holding up the ball, dribbling past my man, creating space for others to play, score goals, assist - but I can also improve in all of the things, too. So I think I have no limits, and I can achieve great things."

What are your first football memories, where did everything start as a kid?

Bakayoko: "Actually, way back. I think - I don’t know if you know the club in Belgium - it’s Oud-Heverlee. That’s the name of the club. I started there because I lived there. I think my agent is one of the most important people, because he's known me since I was eight or nine. He was also my trainer at first, so it’s really a nice story."

Does family play a big part in supporting you, especially when you were young?

Bakayoko: "Of course. I think my family is always with me. I’ve never felt alone in any moment. My mother is always there with me. My father as well. So I think I’m very blessed to have a family like this, that supports me in everything I do."

How important is it to have a supportive family as a developing young player?

Bakayoko: "I think it’s very important to have family in your corner because it helps you to go in the right direction. Because I think if you are a young player - and even a young person in general - you always have things that you maybe don’t know about. Maybe go in the direction that maybe is not the right direction, and you don’t know what the consequence can be. But family helps you go straight, and even when you have ups and even downs, they help you be consistent in the way you feel and in the way you act. It is very important in my eyes."

Tell us about your time at Oud-Heverlee, Brugge, Mechelen und Anderlecht...

Bakayoko: "Leuven - I think when I was in the youth, I lived there and not far from there - that was the biggest club in the area. I played there for two or three years. It was very good, actually; I developed very well.

"Then I went to Club Brugge. I think it was my first real disappointment as a player because at the end of the season I remember they told me that the mental part and the way I played was not good enough for them, so I had to leave the club after one year.

"Then I went to Mechelen, where I think - because I had to leave Brugge - it changed my mindset a lot. I started to be more professional, to try to see, OK, I’m maybe not good enough, it's OK, but now I have to see the way to be good enough and to bounce back and not feel like it's all over. So I think I maybe needed that. It’s difficult to say, but maybe it helped me a lot because after that, I played two incredible years in Mechelen.

"Then I went to Anderlecht, and Anderlecht had one year where we had a very, very strong team. A lot of players are now in big teams, and then after that I went to PSV [Eindhoven], and that’s where I wrote the rest of the story."

How did the move to PSV Eindhoven come about and how important was this step?

Bakayoko: "I think you have to find an environment where you can grow and also grow as a person and feel like looking forward to still being with people that understand you. I think that was the best way to improve that. PSV is also very known for the incredible youth they always had. I’m really thankful to them for giving me the chance because I think they supported me a lot. I think that went very well. We won every possible trophy in the Netherlands, and quite a few times. So I think I gave back what they gave me. And this was a mutual understanding, and it was a very nice time there."

You've have played 18 games for Belgium, scoring once. What does it mean to you to play for your country?

Bakayoko: "I think a lot for every kind of football player. I think everyone would dream to play in the national team, and I had the chance to play there, and of course I want to play there again. That’s also one of the reasons I try to do my best every time to be there and to prove that I can be adding something there, too."

It's going pretty well for Belgium right now, with 12 goals scored and none against in the last two matches. How much are you looking forward to playing for your country at the World Cup next year?

Bakayoko: "I think, like everyone, it is a big event - maybe the biggest football tournament there is. I think you want to be part of it. You want to be part of the story, and also for your country, because I think everyone feels a special feeling for his own country. I think where you have your friends, you have everyone that supports the country, and this starts to get people together and to be really a community when everything goes well, and that’s why I try to add to it."

How do you spend your free time in Leipzig and have you already experienced the city?

Bakayoko: "Actually, it’s like a student city - I didn’t expect it. I don’t have a lot of time to go out and maybe to do things, but I try to maybe go to the zoo when I have time, to try to discover things. But I don’t really have a lot of time, so it’s difficult to do things in the city."