Rudiger on the derby, his injury recovery, and Spalletti's influence on him

See what the Germany international had to say about his recovery from injury, the impact Luciano Spalletti has had on his defending and, of course, the derby on Sunday against Lazio...

Are you ready for the derby?

“Yes, we've trained well all week. It's just a shame we've lost [Mohamed] Salah to injury.”

You, on the other hand, seem to have made a full recovery.

“I went through four tough long months. I'm up and running again now and I have to thank everyone I worked with during my recovery – including myself.”

What was it like to suddenly get injured in your first training session with Germany in France?

“It was a shock. I knew at once that I wouldn't be able to play any part in the Euros. I'd had a good season with Roma and I was really looking forward to the tournament but I was positive right from the start. My Germany team-mates were all sat in silence at dinner that evening while I was laughing and I seemed to be more relaxed than anyone. I told them: 'Cheer up you guys, at least it didn't happen to one of you.'

"It was a nasty surprise but I'm a positive guy. I come from a poor family and I know what it means to have to fight for something. I never give up, whether it's fighting an injury or in a match. The operation and my rehabilitation went well. Professor Mariani told me I could be back on the pitch in four months. At the start everyone was saying that four months was really short for a ruptured cruciate but it seemed like ages to me. I'm fine now and I have the surgeon to thank. They'd have to kill me to stop me. I want to win all the time.”

What will Lazio have to do to stop you?

“The same thing: kill me.”

Do they worry you at all this year?

“I don't know the club or the coach but I'm sure they'll be really up for it. It's a big game for both teams. This is a derby with a great tradition but I'm not worried and I'm not looking at Lazio. I prefer to focus on us and our own target, which is simply to win it.”

Has Luciano Spalletti shown you how to stop Ciro Immobile?

“Not yet, no, but he will. We know he's in good form this season but we're Roma and I think we're a better team than they are. Now we have to prove it on the pitch because you can talk for hours but at the end of the day the only thing that matters is what happens in those 90 minutes on Sunday at 3 pm. I'm expecting a real battle.”

You'll be without the Curva Sud but Lazio will have their fans there. Don't you feel a bit alone?

“Since I joined this club I've only ever seen our Curva full on YouTube and TV. I can't say much about the sort of energy they could convey but [Francesco] Totti and [Daniele] De Rossi have told me it would be completely different. It is a bit sad we don't have our fans behind us at the stadium, although they'll all be watching the match on the other side. It would be a big boost for us if they were there. It's a real shame. At Dortmund for example you get 80,000 fans at every game and the atmosphere is electric – you can't even hear your own voice out there.”

Do you at least sense the fans' support around the city?

“Rome is incredible. The first day I came here there was this old lady in the clinic where I was having my medical and she turned to me and said: 'You're Rudiger!' I was shocked. That sort of thing would never happen in Germany. You'd have to be someone like [Bastian] Schweinsteiger, [Philipp] Lahm or [Miroslav] Klose and even then you only might be recognised. I understood straight away that this city is mad about football so the derby is obviously very special.

"In the days leading up to the game people come up to you to say a few words and they all say, 'We're counting on you!' So you see how passionate the fans are and we know there can only be one result on Sunday: victory. It's important for the league table too.”

Did you hear the racist booing from the Lazio fans in the derby last year?

“I did hear it a bit but I'd rather not give any importance to people like that. Besides anything else they must have a few screws loose because Lazio have black players like Keita too. So it just makes no sense. If they insult me, they should realise that they're doing exactly the same thing to one of their own players.”

If you could choose just one, would you rather beat Lazio now or Juventus in Turin?

“I'd rather win the derby because it's the next match and it's the most important one for Roma fans. But if I was to think about how it could affect the title race, it would probably be more useful to take three points off Juve at their place.”

Do you think Juventus are weaker this season?

“It's true that they're not playing brilliantly but to be honest Juve have something a lot of Italian sides lack, which is a winning mentality. Last year, for example, they went to Atalanta and won 2-0 by digging in, whereas we conceded three goals and this year we even lost. That's the difference between them and other teams. We've dropped too many silly points by the wayside, like at Empoli, where Fiorentina and AC Milan scored four.”

Looking at the matches played this season though, there doesn't seem to be that big a gap.

“That's true. If we hadn't dropped points here and there, we'd be top. In any case we're only four points behind. A year ago they weren't playing well but around this stage of the season they overtook us after we'd held a big lead in September. At the end of the season they finished on 91 and we had 80. But I think we can catch them this year: we have to believe.”

Roma just need to win a trophy now...

“Yes, it's really time we did. It's been 15 years since this club last won the title – that's too long. Roma have a great tradition. At a time when some of the big clubs in Germany are fighting to stay up, we're fortunate enough to be challenging for the title. We have to keep fighting right down to the wire.”

Would you say you've improved under Spalletti?

“You only have to look at my performances before, with Rudi Garcia, compared to now. I must be honest: I didn't do very well at the beginning but since Spalletti has come in I think I've improved the tactical side of my game immensely. That's one of the reasons why I wanted to come here because I knew I'd learn a lot about tactics in Italy. I've even managed to set up [Edin] Dzeko for a goal, which is not really my job. Scoring's not my job either but it doesn't matter who scores in the derby!”