FC St. Pauli

...his first training camp under new boss Alexander Blessin: "It was intensive, that's for sure. It was good to have two days off on our return to Hamburg. We worked hard in Austria and have definitely made progress. Every coach has his own philosophy and wants to put his own ideas into practice. I think we're well on the way to doing that, which is why I'm looking forward to the new season. We still have to do some fine-tuning and work on the details, but the basic idea is clear. We're watching a lot of video footage and we'll be ready in a week or two."

...the successful friendly against Olympique Lyon: "We have a lot of quality on the pitch. Against Lyon you could see that lots of things are working. We're already a very good team."

...the next trial of strength against Norwich City: "We definitely aim to go flat out. You need every game to be really fit in time for the start of the season. We also want to use the game to carry on working on our ideas."

...his development at FC St. Pauli: "The last few years have been exciting, and a lot has happened. I feel very much at home here. Last season taught me that you have to keep going because you can always develop as a player. It's been a very instructive time for me. I aim to keep staking a claim, keep training well and go flat out, which is also what Alexander Blessin wants to see from me. The system suits me but in the end it's always up to the coach to decide who plays, of course, and I'm trying not to give it too much thought."

...the sense of anticipation ahead of the Bundesliga campaign: "It's huge. I'm really looking forward to the game at Freiburg, which is where I come from. That's obviously going to be very special, but the opportunity to play all the other teams and in this league in general is a dream come true."

...the team spirit: "This team is special, which is why I said I feel very much at home here. We have some special characters in the team you don't find everywhere you go, as you saw last year. We wouldn't have had so much success without this spirit and sense of togetherness."

...old and new captain Jackson Irvine: "Players like Jackson Irvine can always lift you when things aren't going so well. He leads from the front, he's loud, and he's extremely important for us."

Photos: FC St. Pauli