Ilzer: "We have to be wide awake"

A trip to Hamburg: TSG Hoffenheim play away to FC St. Pauli on Friday (20:30 CET/liveticker on tsg-hoffenheim.de). In his press conference ahead of the clash with the newly-promoted club, head coach Christian Ilzer spoke about Friday's match, the personnel situation and the league table.

Christian Ilzer on…

…Friday's game: "We can certainly expect a big atmospheric game against a team that defend really well. St Pauli keep a very compact shape. We have to be wide awake and deliver a good, cohesive team performance on the pitch. Every game points the way forward. We've developed a good feeling in the last few away games."

…the important factors: "We need a top performance over 90 minutes. The team experienced St. Pauli's very compact defence in the game in the first half of the season. I've watched St. Pauli's last few games, but also the reverse fixture, of course. We started very well at home, but it became difficult once we fell behind. That wasn't just evident in that game, but throughout the season as a whole. If St Pauli take the lead, we'll have a real job on our hands. We want to concentrate on ourselves and ride the high-energy atmosphere that awaits us there."

…the league table: "Every millimetre will be fought for. We have to bring this mentality with us. St. Pauli want to draw back closer to us with a win. We can't lose too much time calculating, but simply focus on our performance. Then the results of the other teams won't matter."

…the personnel situation: "Things are looking good for Marius Bülter's return. Diadie Samassékou has injured himself in the same area as in January and will be out for longer. Arthur Chaves is suspended. We have more players available than we did in February."

...Diadie Samassékou: "We have to try and make the right decision so that the injury can be treated properly. Of course, it's not easy on the mind when you're out for a long time and then get injured again straight away. We want to take our time to build him up so that he can come back soon and be fit again."

...the long-term absentees: "Ozan had another minor operation on his knee. Everything is going according to plan. If all goes smoothly, Ozan Kabak and Grischa Prömel could perhaps return to team training at the end of the season. Both are doing well, that's the most important thing."

The opposition's form:

FC St. Pauli are 15th in the table with 22 points. However, coach Alexander Blessin's team have not managed a win in their last six games (two draws, four defeats).

Head-to-head record:

This will be the fourth time the two clubs have met in the Bundesliga. The record is even, with one win apiece and one draw. FC St. Pauli won 2-0 at the PreZero Arena in the reverse fixture this season.