FC St. Pauli

Having overseen his first training session in the morning, the new St. Pauli boss explained how everything had come about: "In this game things go very quickly sometimes. In this respect, football is often unpredictable. But I'm delighted to be here. When the enquiry came, I thought about it for a day and was then happy to accept because it's a fantastic and very appealing job. I'll start by getting to know the players, the coaching team and the backroom staff. I had an opportunity to do that on the training ground this morning and I was delighted with how the players conducted themselves. We now have to take that into the game on Sunday."

One priority for Luhukay over the next few games will be the relationship with the fans. "It's important for us to perform as well as we can in the last few games to create an absolute bond between us and our supporters," he said. "We need that bond to be successful. The way the lads played in the first half of the season thrilled me. To get back to that level of performance, the players have to play with confidence as a collective." Here, the Dutchman will lead by example. "I want to exude every day what the people expect here - the desire to be successful with St. Pauli."

Luhukay went on to reveal that he has no plans to change his coaching staff. "I know Markus Gellhaus very well," he said. "We worked together very successfully for ten years and I look forward to working with him again. I also know André Trulsen from a coaching course." In Marvin Knoll and Sami Allagui, Luhukay is teaming up again with former acquaintances from Hertha BSC, which will help him to settle in a little more quickly. Ultimately, however, Luhukay knows only one thing counts. "Wins are the best medicine," he said.

Turning his attention to his first game in charge of the Boys in Brown on Sunday, Luhukay said:  "It's a special atmosphere here, of course. These are the moments why we live football. We're up against a strong team in Bielefeld. They've had a great year so far. Uwe Neuhaus is doing an outstanding job. Arminia have a lot of confidence, a good structure and stability. It's an attractive challenge for my players because they can show what they're capable of right away."

Photos: Witters