Young pair back in action in Germany tonight

Viktor Gyökeres and Leo Østigård are preparing for the resumption of Bundesliga action tonight with their loan club FC St Pauli.

Bruce Talbot

2020-01-28T06:00:00Z

Viktor Gyokeres and Leo Ostigard.

The Hamburg-based outfit are away to Greuther Fürth in the second tier of the German League, following a five-week winter break.

St Pauli spent part of that time in Spain where striker Gyökeres scored in a friendly against Arminia Bielefeld and enjoyed a winter training camp for the first time in his career.

“I’ve been to training camps before because in Sweden we play from March to November and usually have a short break in June, but in England they play straight through from August to May, so a training camp after a proper winter break is a new experience,” he said.

The 21-year-old spent time back in Brighton before linking up with his club again at the beginning of the month. “It did me good,” he told St Pauli’s website. “I enjoyed having Christmas and New Year off and spending time with friends and family, but I couldn't wait to get started again.”

Gyökeres initially struggled to get match time but in the two games before the break he scored three goals and provided two assists in wins over Arminia and Wiesbaden.

Viktor Gyokeres.

Østigård has been a regular in the heart of St Pauli’s defence, making 14 appearances so far, and the Swede is confident he can help his team climb from 11th in the second half of the season.

He said, “We know we can perform better and improve our results because we have the quality to do so. Some of the lads will be back from injury and increase the competition for places. We have to learn the mistakes but I’m confident we can have a better second half.”