FC St. Pauli

Head coach Fabian Hürzeler: "Our speed of execution was decisive today. The aim was to take up good positions and stay close to each other to be good in our gegenpressing. We did that very well, especially in the first half, when we were very dominant and attacked them repeatedly. We were very solid at the back as well and took a deserved 2-0 lead. We didn't start too badly after the interval and had two good efforts through Elias Saad and Manolis Saliakas. We knew Hertha would come back at us, which they did, and they're always capable of scoring because they have tremendous pace and switch the play well. All in all, we had good defensive stability, albeit not as much as in the first half, which enabled us to keep a clean sheet. I'm very happy with the first 60 minutes. We'll go over the rest later."

Marcel Hartel: "We were top-notch in the first half and good in the second. Huge respect to the team! After last week we wanted to show a different side to ourselves and get back to the basics that have made us so strong this season, which we did in every respect. We kept a clean sheet and took a deserved three points. In the second half we wanted to carry on where we left off, but Hertha switched things round and operated with three players in the centre, which allowed them to push us back a bit. We didn't concede, though, and got the win. Having a ten-point lead is a great feeling."

Jackson Irvine: "We were very dominant, especially in the first half, when we offered them nothing at all. We were good on the ball, pressed well and forced them to hit it long. We controlled the game and put in a very good performance in view of the injuries we have. After the Schalke game we knew we had to show a reaction and that’s what we did. We were hungry in the tackle. The defence and the collective desire to keep the ball away from our goal made us strong. We wanted to get back to that and that's what we did. Everyone pulled their weight. We'll be without Manos at Nürnberg through suspension, but we have options to replace him while he's serving his ban. We'll analyse today's game because we're a process-oriented team and have the big picture in mind. We always want to improve."

Johannes Eggestein: "We were very dominant in the first half but dropped off a little in the second because Hertha put us under more pressure. We gave very few chances away, though, and were well worth the win. We covered a lot of topics in training during the week and worked on our game. It was important for us to regain our intensity, especially when running at the opposition. After conceding three goals twice in a row, the aim was to keep a clean sheet again. We did that today and that was crucial. We have the individual quality up front to score at any time."

Pál Dárdai (Hertha BSC head coach): "Congratulations to St. Pauli on a deserved win. They played the way we expected but Fabian set his team up very well and made it very tough for us. Our plan was to defend from the front by being aggressive in the tackle, but we conceded twice in situations where you have to put your foot in instead of turning away. We've been reacting far too late from set pieces this season and keep shipping goals, lots of goals that have hurt us a lot. We deserved to be two down at half-time and it could have been three. We didn't have a single meaningful attempt on goal. We made a lot of changes after the interval but because the final ball was lacking, we didn't have any genuine chances, which is why St. Pauli deserved to win."

Photos: Witters