In an exclusive interview with French media "L'Equipe", Bayern central defender Upamecano talked about his changes in defensive ability and his future.

Do you like tackling? How does it feel to make a successful tackle?

I rarely make tackles, it depends on the situation. Sometimes if you are suppressed by the opponent's speed, you may need to make a tackle, but if you can keep up with the opponent's speed, you can prevent the pull-down without making a tackle. I am personally a faster defender. A successful tackle feels like a goal in England, but in Germany or France it's just a tackle.

Data shows that this season in the Bundesliga, you have completed 382 high-intensity runs in 9 rounds, as many as midfielders Goretzka and Pavlovich. Have you conducted any special training?

Sometimes when I see these data, I think to myself: "It's incredible..." I also noticed that my running distance is very high (the average running distance in the Bundesliga is 9 kilometers). This is our style: actively fight and run more than the opponent... Rangnick once instilled this concept in me, and the arrival of Kompany allowed me to regain this intensity. I felt that I had lost this spirit before. Some coaches will tell me to run less and stay in position, while other coaches will encourage you to run more. My style is to press the opponent's forwards as much as possible and not let them turn, so there is a lot of running, and now I feel that I am in great shape.

To become better, do you need to score more goals through set pieces?

It was a goal, but when you play with Kane, you don't care too much about goals (laughs). For me, I would rather not concede a goal in a game than score a goal. But I know that scoring goals is where I can improve (only 5 goals in 167 games for Bayern).

Did you develop your heading skills through practice?

No, naturally, I have always had good heading skills. Why? I don't know either, but that's it. I was a striker when I was a kid and people called me Adebayor (laughs) because I scored a lot of goals and was tall and had braids. I played almost every position except goalkeeper. In fact, when I came to Valenciennes (in 2013), the sporting director asked me: "What position do you play?"

You can press high, but do you also like to advance with the ball, create a numerical advantage, or open up space?

Yes, I like to push the attack and break the defense. I learned this trick when I worked with Rangnick in Salzburg. I like this style of play very much, but there is a certain risk. If it succeeds, everyone will say: "Great!" If it fails, people will accuse me of taking risks. But I've always been adventurous and as a defender that's one of my responsibilities. As for the fake pass, I don’t know how to do it. What would the coach say if he saw this? (Laughs) I would be called into his office the next day, whether it was Kompany or Didier Deschamps, and I knew what they would say: "Oh, it worked, but what the hell are you doing? Do you think you are Mbappe?"

How has your passing improved under Kompany's guidance?

He mainly helped me adjust my stance, especially my body posture, how to handle long passes and how to catch the ball. The direction of the body is very important and needs to be mastered very precisely. I think we did a good job against Paris. We watched a lot of videos and some training sessions were 30 to 40 minutes long. We have become a united and strong team.

Do you have any special tactical arrangements when playing against Paris?

I am not unprepared. I often watch Paris games. We know that this is a very high-level team and they dare to take risks: Pacho and Marquinhos' high press is very threatening. The coach emphasized that we should not be afraid and should take the initiative. He even said to me before the game: "If necessary, you have to press the opponent's goalkeeper."

In the national team and club, your position is different. How do you adapt to this change?

Every club has its own way of defending, and you need to adapt to the requirements of the French national team, not the other way around. If Deschamps asks me to press the goalkeeper one day... I'll do it, but that's unlikely to happen, right? He's not at the point of doing that either, everyone has their own style and what I've seen is that it works both ways. If the coach tells me tomorrow: "You play No. 6", I will play it. If he asks me to play right back, I will play it too. In short, I will give my best. To be honest, I don't mind where I play. I played as a left center back in the 2022 World Cup. The angle of passing the ball is different, but defensively it is the same.

Deschamps hopes that the players can determine their future before next summer's World Cup. How is your situation?

I also hope it can be finalized before the World Cup. Now my agent is handling the matter and we will make the right decision. I've been given good advice and now I'm focused on this season and my goals for club and country without thinking too much about it. I have always said that I feel very good at Bayern, I have a great coach and I have a good relationship with my teammates. I have my goals and if any other clubs are interested in me, then I'm very grateful.