FC St. Pauli

Dapo Afolayan on...

…the win at Hannover: "We went there to get the job done and we did that. It was another game against another tough opponent and we were happy to win the game. The result means a lot to us. A lot of pressure had been built up because of the results before that but for me there wasn't much pressure. I always say pressure's a privilege. Some teams are playing for nothing at this stage of the season, so to be in with a chance of achieving something means we've done well. I take each day and each game as it comes, so let's see where it takes us."

…his strong performances this year: "What people in the media and many fans don't see is the work you do in training every day. I had problems with my body for a while and was playing through it, which probably wasn't the best. I worked hard during the winter break to get myself feeling better and I improved a lot tactically as well. I wanted to play with a bit more freedom. As long as I help the team, how I play doesn't really matter."

…the pressure during the run-in: "The end of the season is obviously always different, but each game is about 90 minutes and getting three points. That's the only way you can maintain your level throughout the season. There's tension because of the situation we're in but we have to put that to one side and focus on the things we can control and what we want to achieve and that's just another three points really."

…his footballing ambitions: "For me as a player, I've got personal dreams and aspirations and one of them has always been to play at the highest level of the game. To be so close to something like that is good, but if you focus on that too much it never really happens. I've played at all different levels and I've always been at my best when I've simply focused on the next game and worked hard each day, so I'll continue to do that and just see how far it takes me."

Oladapo Afolayan (here under challenge from Rostock's Dennis Dressel) scored the third goal in the 3-2 win in the reverse fixture.

…the next home game against Rostock: "I haven't really seen much of them to be honest. There's always the cliché that they have nothing to lose but at the end of the day I think every team in this league goes out to win every game, so it doesn't change anything for the team and how we approach it. We'll go out there in front of our own fans and that's always an added bonus. Matches like these are always fun to play in but again it's just another match. Emotions are always a big part of football but controlling emotions is more important. We'll embrace the atmosphere but we're there to do a job."

…his recollections of the reverse fixture at Rostock: "The first game was a good game. We had an early setback but showed real character to get back into the game. We scored some really good goals. The one from Manos was particularly special. We saw in that game that Rostock have got quality and can create chances. We need to make sure we're concentrated throughout the whole game."

Photos: Witters