The word Herbstmeisterschaft − the unofficial title bestowed upon the team top of the Bundesliga at the winter break −  was brought up at today's press conference with the coach and the sporting director. "It's not a title," said Michael Zorc, who subsequently added: "For me this isn't the right way to approach it. We want to win the match on Saturday." Lucien Favre echoed that sentiment, saying: "We're fully focused on Bremen."

Focusing on one game at a time is the mantra of the club officials and the team have been fully on board with it since day one. "It's a nice surprise to be where we are," said Michael Zorc. "Nobody would've predicted it when we started in July. What's been decisive is the way we've got to where we are: by taking small steps, because we've been focused on each individual match and haven't started to calculate. That's the wrong approach. Games are now coming so thick and fast that we don't even think about such overriding objectives – and it doesn't help to do so either."

Lucien Favre said: "We're satisfied with the situation, we're top of the table. But it doesn't help much to talk about it. We have three games in six days. We need to be fully focused on the next game, on Bremen. Then on Tuesday we're in Düsseldorf and soon afterwards we face Gladbach at home on Friday – that's more than an English week."

BVB are eager to kick off their final week of football in 2018 with a win against Bremen on Saturday, when they will be hoping to pick up the first three of the nine points up for grabs before the winter break. Favre's charges will be facing a team "that try to build the play from the back. They always want to play; they try to create numerical superiority on the flanks in midfield; they always have chances. The results come down to small details. A very good team."

The coach would not be drawn on the personnel situation. When asked about the players who missed out in Monaco, he simply replied: "Three have trained and two others have partially trained, 15 minutes. I don't want to say everything." He did, however, reveal that one of the two players who are a major doubt for the weekend is Thomas Delaney.

Should the Dane miss the meeting with his former club due to calf problems, a team-mate will be ready to step into the breach. As was the case in Monaco. "Although we made a lot of changes, we still played our football," praised Zorc, who said: "I like the fact that the team's always hungry. We need to keep that going."
Boris Rupert