FC St. Pauli

It's been a shorter week of training than normal but Lienen is upbeat ahead of the trip to the Allianz Arena, not least because he has hardly any injury worries. "It looks as if almost everyone is available," he said. Joel Keller is one player who resumed full training this week. "He's at least recovered enough to be able to take part in the sessions with the rest of the squad, but needs more workouts to get him back to match fitness," Lienen explained. The previously ailing Lasse Sobiech (symptoms of illness) and Mats Møller Dæhli (blow to the calf) also resumed full training on Thursday, and Lienen hopes both will be able to play on Saturday. "We'll know more after training," he said.

Turning to Saturday's opponents, Lienen spoke of a club with high ambitions who are again failing to meet their aspirations this season. "1860 added lots of quality and experience in summer and strengthened again during the winter break," he said, pointing to Abdoulaye Ba, who has impressed at the heart of the defence recently. "They build the play well from the back and have quick and good dribblers on the flanks," Lienen continued. "We have to really careful there. We need the mentality and the will to go through the pain barrier – only then will we have a chance. It's precisely when you've had a boost like the one we had on Monday night against Karlsruhe that you need to sharpen your senses."

"Everyone knows how that win came about. We've worked very hard and it was the result of months of effort. The way the players are keeping their feet on the ground and are able to place the win over Karlsruhe in its proper context is very positive." Another plus in the battle against relegation is the support of the fans. "They turn every away game into a home game," said Lienen. "If I could, I'd go up to every single one of them and shake their hand. Not to take the plaudits myself but to say thank you for the way they've been supporting us."

Photo: Witters