The Borussia Dortmund first team had only just returned from the first session of their one-week training camp in Switzerland when a storm broke out over Rad Ragaz and the rainfall so eagerly anticipated by the farmers came pouring down.

Marcel Schmelzer was leading a group of 10 cycling players, who had just completed an approximately 60-minute session in temperatures of 36 degrees, while their team-mates were still signing autographs. "The conditions for a training camp could scarcely be better," said Nuri Sahin, who is with BVB in Switzerland for the sixth time. "The weather's almost always been good, the hotel is super and there are good options for recovery too. We feel very comfortable here as a team."

As well as focusing on training themes, the camp is about "integrating the new signings well and getting back to becoming a group that has clear objectives and in which everyone fights for each other," explained the midfielder. "It needs to be fun again to defend as a team." (br)