Mr Skibbe, will team captain Chris play at his former club FC St. Pauli?
No, unfortunately he is out for the game and won’t even travel up north. Obviously he would have liked to play against his former club but his back pain does not allow him to. He successfully completed yesterday’s practice session but then his problems came up again.
Are the reasons for his problems known?
There are no precise results. His back was examined via various medical methods, without any diagnostic findings. Even the medic who operated on him a while back has been consulted.
Are there alternatives? Alexander Meier is also out for now.
Yes and further candidates are not 100% fit since the game on Wednesday, i.e. with Pirmin Schwegler and Maik Franz we’ll have to see how they get on during practice today.
Might Caio play?
Sure, Caio would be a good option. Not only for his great goal he had a good game on Wednesday.
The fans might see another brace of Gekas?
I am very happy about the clinical finishing he’s showing at the moment. There will be times though when he won’t score, other players will have to step in then.
Will the run of four unbeaten games in a row continue?
We’ll travel to Hamburg to collect at least a point.
What do you think of the St. Pauli team?
It will be a very physical game, St. Pauli are a fierce side. Firstly we will have to defend ourselves to then find our game going forward.
How about the famous Millerntor stadium atmosphere?
It’s a great atmosphere out there. But you’ll find that in Frankfurt, in Dortmund or Kaiserslautern too. We’re looking forward to it, the atmosphere will lift us also.
