It is a grey morning in Dortmund.
Autumnal rain falls from the sky, orange leaf mulch coats the slick pavements and the wheels of the vehicles thundering past on the Rheinlanddamm send spray fizzing into the air. But inside the Borussia Dortmund offices, housed in a modern, six-storey grey-brick building southwest of the city centre, the mood is as bright as the bold shade of yellow that adorns the club crest.
The previous evening, at a fervent Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund stormed back from 2-0 down at half-time to beat Inter Milan 3-2, keeping their hopes of progressing from the UEFA Champions League group phase in their own hands.