FC St. Pauli

Fabian Hürzeler on…

...the prospects of a return for Eric Smith and Lars Ritzka: "We have to take each day as it comes. Both trained yesterday and were able to sprint. We'll see how their bodies have responded today. I'm optimistic they'll be involved."

...his emotions and approach to the game: "A derby's a derby. Those who know me know I'm more matter-of-fact off the pitch but emotional on it. We can't dismiss the importance of the game for the fans, the entire club and for us as a team. It's something very special. We're striving for the maximum and will try to win the game and give something back to the fans. I've faced HSV twice as head coach and haven't won yet. I want to give something back to the fans as well. I'm not preparing any differently. For me it's important to stick to my way of doing things instead of artificially trying to do something different."

...possible thoughts of promotion: "It's important to think positively. The way you think is the way you come across and have an effect on others. I'm someone who tries to focus on positive thoughts, so I try to lead by example. For all the sense of anticipation, though, it's important to have your wits about you at the right moment and think rationally in order to make clear decisions in a heated atmosphere. It's been a while since the last promotion. Fourteen years is a long time. You can sense the longing of the club and the fans to be in the top flight again. The task now is to go the last mile. I haven't given any thought to anything else, such as possible celebrations, because the derby is my sole focus."

...the changes at HSV under Steffen Baumgart: "The most striking change is their pressing and the intensity with which they close players down. They operate an aggressive backline shift and try to defend forward all the time. Every player is drilled to defend forward. On the ball, they played give and go under Tim Walter and some players still have that in them. Generally, they now operate and build up from a three-two structure and maintain multiple positions."

...the atmosphere at the Volkspark: "We won't be welcomed with open arms and we're preparing the team for that. There'll be a heated atmosphere. The stadium won't be for us, but we can draw strength from that. We'll try to impose our possession game on them, press high, play with intensity and run hard. It'll be important to keep a cool head in the heated atmosphere and try to prevent external factors from having an influence on the game. To do that, we'll need to be very good in every phase. The head will play a role. For the players it'll be about finding solutions to perform to their potential under enormous pressure."

...the significance of a derby win compared with promotion: "Promotion is always the result of an entire season, whereas a derby win is always the result of one game. We'll do our utmost to win this game, but I'd attach more value to getting promoted."

...the subject of promotion in his team talk: "I haven't uttered that word once so far and don't intend to do so either. We haven't done it all season, so why should we do it now? The players can read the table and know what will happen if we win. We're trying to continue our process. We want to bring our identity and our game to the pitch on Friday. In an atmosphere that couldn't be louder or more heated and against a team who'll be motivated to the hilt, that's what we have to do."

Photos: Witters