In a gripping city derby, Hamburger SV knocked out their neighborhood rivals from the promotion race to the 2nd Bundesliga and saved their own chances of returning to the Bundesliga.
In the 109th edition of the duel between the two rivals, HSV prevailed 4:3 (1:1) thanks to a strong start in the second half. “A lot came together. We enjoyed it and also had to suffer,” said captain Sebastian Schonlau to the broadcaster Sky after an atmospheric game. “Today only the moment counts, only the day.”
FC St. Pauli took the lead through Manolis Saliakas (36th). Jonas David (44′) made it 1-1 before the break with a 20-metre shot into the corner. Within four minutes shortly after the change, Bakery Jatta (48th) and Moritz Heyer (52nd) made the turnaround perfect. Substitute Elias Saad (71st) scored the goal for FC St. Pauli. But his teammate Jakov Medic (78th) scored an own goal. The guests were not granted more than Jackson Irvine’s reconnection (80th).
“Take the Momentum”
“Now we want to take the momentum with us,” said goalkeeper Daniel Heuer-Fernandes, looking back on the last five games. Due to the success, coach Tim Walter’s team not only took revenge for the 0:3 in October at the Millerntor in the first half of the season. HSV (56 points) moved up to a direct promotion spot at least until Sunday and relegated 1. FC Heidenheim (54) from second place in the table. The Heidenheimers play against Holstein Kiel on Sunday (1.30 p.m. / Sky) and can counter again with a win.
FC St. Pauli (47) is fifth in the table and now nine points behind arch-rivals from Volkspark. For coach Fabian Hürzeler’s team it was the second defeat after a record series of ten wins. Nevertheless, Hürzeler praised his players. “I’m proud of my team,” he said. Such a defeat is “part of the process”.
Darmstadt consolidates first place
SV Darmstadt 98 (61) consolidated their lead in the table with a 2-1 (1-1) win over Karlsruher SC and took another step towards promotion. Five games before the end of the season, Hessen has five points more than HSV. Braydon Manu (26′) and Philipp Tietz (51′) turned the game around with their goals. The guests took the lead through Fabian Schleusener (11th).
The football festival of the evening took place in Hamburg. In front of 56,400 spectators – including 6000 Pauli fans – in the Volksparkstadion, which was sold out at a city derby for the first time since the Corona pandemic, an intense game developed from the start. Scanning – none. HSV still had advantages in the first ten minutes and scored the first goal through Robert Glatzel (3rd).
After that, the guests from the neighborhood seven kilometers away controlled the game more and more. Saliakas’ lead after a great combination was well deserved. What was more surprising, however, was David’s equalization shortly before the change.
The second half started a few minutes late due to the burning of pyrotechnics in both fan blocks. Then the HSV burned down a small sporting firework display on the pitch. First Jatta (48th) scored to make it 2-1, four minutes later Heyer increased with a dust-off. FC St. Pauli needed some time to catch up. After that, the Kiezclub never gave up and also digested the own goal. However, he failed to win a point.
