Stafylidis: "Everything's in place here for us to work well"

Konstantinos, you've completed your first few sessions with TSG. How have you settled in?

"The first week at TSG has felt brilliant. Everything is in place here for us to work well and we're looking forward to the new season. The training under Alfred Schreuder is a lot of fun and very intensive."

What are your objectives with TSG?

"Hoffenheim have done some outstanding work in the past three years and twice qualified for European competition. We want to give it our all and then we'll see where that gets us."

What's your take on Alfred Schreuder?

"I've only been at TSG for a week and so it's still quite difficult to make an assessment. But I believe he's doing some very good work. He has a real passion for his job and he gives us encouragement."

You were out injured for a long time last year. How did you deal with the situation?

"It was very difficult for me. I broke a rib while I was in England and was unable to play for several months. When I returned to Augsburg, I had several muscular injuries and was out of action for half a year in total. Fortunately, I was given a lot of support and I'm happy that I'm fit again now."   

TSG have their first friendly fixture against Eintracht Braunschweig on Saturday. Are you looking forward to it?

"I'm obviously delighted to be getting started and to be playing football in a competitive environment again. But we're only at the start of our pre-season and there's still a long way to go."