Hummels' comments before Tottenham clash

This is what the defender had to say...

How important is tomorrow's game and how is Claudio Ranieri's playing system different to Ivan Juric's?

“Tomorrow's game is incredibly important for us. It's possibly our last chance if we want to finish in the top eight but we need points anyway to reach the next round and turn things around for our team and our club. It's a very difficult game but it's also a big chance. We're playing a very strong team but we can show we're able to play at a much higher level.

“The biggest difference for me as a defender is that we work more as a unit together, rather than covering man for man, although sometimes you defend man to man anyway. There are some similarities, but with Ranieri we prefer to defend more as a unit. I hope we can do that properly tomorrow.”

How many times have you found yourself in such a difficult dressing-room situation as this? What's the mood like? Against Napoli, despite the effort, the team seemed to be lacking a spark and looked a bit disjointed. Do you think there's been a change of gear?

“First of all, I can say that since I arrived here three months ago the team has been working really well on the training ground so I don't think that's a problem at all.

“Of course I've had some difficult times in my career. At Borussia Dortmund we were bottom after 19 games – that was a crazy season. You just have to work hard and believe in your qualities. You go through spells when things don't go smoothly and you have to work harder.

“We have the quality to be a lot better and I'm 100% convinced we can play much better and score a lot more goals. We have some very good attacking players so we have to put them in the right positions to let them shine. We work hard in training every day and I'm sure we'll get better over the coming weeks.”

Why have you not played much until now? Did you ever regret coming here?

“The main reason is that when I came here I hadn't trained for three months. It took me time to get into good shape and then it was the coach's decision. You have to respect that, although it obviously wasn't what I was hoping for.

“I'm pretty sure now I'll get the chance to play and to show what I can do in training. It's up to me to show what the club and the fans want to see. I want to give that trust back to the team, to the club and to the fans and play at the level I'm been used to playing my whole career.

“I would have preferred for things to go differently for me and for the club until now but I think it will turn out well for everyone.”

I think this is your second time here after coming here with Borussia Dortmund in 2016. What kind of game are you expecting tomorrow? And what's your perception of the evolution of Tottenham?

“Tottenham's evolution is really impressive. I really like to watch their games. They play a high pressing, with a lot of pace and purpose on the pitch. They have some incredible individuals and one of my favourite young defenders in the world, although I think he's injured at the moment, Micky van de Ven. He can run 40 km/h. Incredible. They have a spectacular team. I expect them to put us under pressure and try to get the fans involved and show that this is their ground.

“We have to make sure we're not put off by that, play our game, try to quell their strengths and look for their weaknesses, which every team has. It will be a difficult game. They're really good quality, one of my favourite teams in the world right now.”

How you ever come close to joining a Premier League club?

“I've come close a couple of times but it didn't happen for different reasons. This is not the place to talk about that. Maybe when I retire, I'll have time to talk about it. At least four times I was close but it didn't work out. I've played a lot of Premier League teams in the Europa League and Champions League. It's always really difficult and always nice to come here.”

You've played against several of Tottenham's players before. Could you give us your thoughts on Timo Werner and Tottenham's captain, Heung-Min Son? 

“I know Timo very well. I think he's going through a bit of a tough spell right now but with his quality it's just a matter of time before he picks up again – maybe not tomorrow, but after Friday he has my blessing.

“Son is an incredible player. I've had to suffer a lot against him. When he played for Hamburg and Leverkusen he had a habit of scoring against Dortmund and winning games against us. He did the same against Germany in the 2018 World Cup in Russia. He's quick, intelligent, can shoot with both feet. He's really dangerous in the box and also outside the box. An all-round great player.”