FC St. Pauli

Alexander Blessin on…

…the availability of Carlo Boukhalfa, Connor Metcalfe and Philipp Treu: "Carlo is on the right track. He's made good progress, especially over the last four days. The question is whether he'll be fit in time for Friday. He'll be back in full training tomorrow, so we'll have to wait and see. Connor definitely won't make it. We're easing Philipp back in and he resumed full training today. He's fired up but calf injuries are always problematic in my view, which is why we're taking it slowly."

…the goalkeeper situation: "I obviously watched Nikola Vasilj play against Germany and was biting my nails a bit when he went down, but straight after the he signalled that everything was OK. We're really glad he came back unscathed. On the other hand, we know we have a gap in that position. Ronny [Seibt] did well against Hannover and he's filling the position for the time being. We have to be clear it's going to be a long time. We have three keepers who'll be out for several months."

…Jackson Irvine's workload given the international matches: "If the captain's fit and signals that he's ready, then he'll play. Jackson always approaches the trips well and is able to switch off quickly and sleep on long flights. If we see his concentration and intensity levels aren't below par during the game, we'll no doubt have to make a change, but I'm assuming he'll be ready and able to help the team."

...possible starts for Scott Banks and Morgan Guilavogui: "It'll be important for us to keep landing jabs up front but it's also about being solid at the back. Scott is maybe a bit quicker. Morgan has the height he can exploit in attack, but he also adds a certain quality in defence and in aerial duels. We have to weigh it all up and ask ourselves what brings us more at the moment. We'll have to wait and see whether the pendulum swings towards Morgan or Scotty or maybe both will play. My gut feeling will also play a part in the decision."

…the special away fixture at Dortmund: "These are the games we got promoted to the Bundesliga for. The lads earned themselves the right to play in front of the black-and-yellow wall over the course of last season. It being a Friday night game is obviously a highlight. We're looking forward to genuine top-class opposition. You need to be at your best to get anything at Dortmund."

…Dortmund's strengths: "The biggest quality in football at the moment is finding the balance between possession and fast attacking play. In most cases that's what the good teams at the top level do. The bottom line is that they have incredible pace. They'll lose a bit due to the injuries to Karim Adeyemi and Julien Duranville, of course, but Jamie Gittens or Donyell Malen will give them additional pace which we'll have to contain with good gegenpressing and a good rest defence. Making the right decisions at the right time will be important."

…coaching amid all the noise: "First and foremost it'll be about whether the lads are able to communicate with each other on the pitch. I'll probably shout my head off, but the lads will probably struggle to hear me, so I might have to issue instructions to the players nearest the coaches for them to pass on. Staying sat on the bench without showing much emotion isn't what St. Pauli is about."

Photos: FC St. Pauli/Witters