When did you first think that you might get your chance?
Pharell: “Daniel Bauer phoned me on the Thursday before the game and said that – depending on the scoreline – it might happen. When Julian Klamt then said to me that I was about to come on, I was completely in the zone, didn’t think about it and couldn’t get any words out either.”
What did Daniel Bauer say to you on the touchline? After all, Frankfurt were still pushing to turn the game around…
Pharell: “He told me to close down every ball, put every opponent under pressure and just play like I always do.”
Your parents were among the crowd of almost 60,000 at Deutsche Bank Park – and it was also your mum’s birthday. How emotional was it for all of you?
Pharell: “My parents were just speechless with joy. I think all of us will remember that forever. I got loads of messages after the game: from my U19 team, from former coaches and even from colleagues of my parents. That was really nice.”
Where will the shirt from your debut find its place?
Pharell: “It’s already hanging up – framed in my parents’ living room. The shirt from my first time in the squad against Bremen is also hanging up there. Everything else, trophies or mementos, is stowed away in my room.”
You’re the fourth Wolfsburg-born player to make your Bundesliga debut for VfL. What does that mean to you?
Pharell: “Not many people from Wolfsburg have managed to play for the first team here. Being one of them now makes me extremely proud. I was born and raised here. I can’t really imagine anything else. Wolfsburg is my number one.”
You’ve been playing for VfL since U10 level, you were even in the U9 talent team. Do you still remember your first VfL moment?
Pharell: “Yes, it was the talent day for the 2006 year group. I was already involved in that as someone born in 2007 – that’s the first VfL moment I can really remember. There were over 100 kids there, we played across multiple pitches and the coaches watched. Two weeks later, I got the news that I’d made it into the talent team.”
You’ve progressed through all the age groups of the VfL academy. What specifically has that taught you?
Pharell: “Just everything. Ambition, mentality, technical things – the whole package. I apply a lot of the things I’ve learned here today.”
Pharell, to finish: when you sit back and reflect on the last few weeks, what do you take away?
Pharell: “That dreams can come true when you stick at it. The debut was a massive moment but now I want more. I want to continue learning, continue working – and hopefully soon be on the pitch for the first team again. And preferably here in Wolfsburg in front of our fans.”
