Big crowd for autograph session with Sejad Salihovic – knee is feeling good

Salihovic had to admit that signing autographs can have an effect on his fitness – for his left arm anyway. After just a few minutes, the Bosnian ditched his cardigan and the water he was given was already running low. After around an hour, ‘Sali' left behind a room of happy fans. He was in a good mood too – not just for making a lot of fans happy, but because he had finally trained with the football again earlier on that day.

“It was a great feeling. My last touch of a ball was over seven weeks ago,” said Salihovic. His knee dealt with the strain well. “It hasn't swollen up and it doesn't hurt either,” said the midfielder. His workload will increase over the next few days in some individual training sessions. “We will really see how the knee reacts when the tempo increases and there are more changes in direction.”

He couldn't give a timeframe for his return – he's hoping to be involved after the home game against Mainz though (16th March, 15.30 CET) because there is a week off due to international fixtures.