FC St. Pauli didn’t let 1. FC Heidenheim stop them and celebrated their tenth win in a row. With the 1-0 (1-0) on Saturday (April 8th, 2023), Hamburg matched Karlsruher SC’s record in the 2nd division.
Despite nine wins in a row, Fabian Hürzeler emphasized before the game at 1. FC Heidenheim that FC St. Pauli, which he took over in winter, is not an “HSV hunter” because there is “enough to do in their own ranks”. give. After Hamburger SV had already won against Hannover (6:1) at midday, it was clear that he needed a win in his eleventh game as a professional coach in order to start the hunt for the local rivals.
Accordingly, St. Pauli went into the game, started briskly and offensively, but without getting dangerously in front of the opposing goal. Heidenheim took a moment to get into the game. The ease was missing after the promotion contenders gave up a 2-0 lead in injury time at 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the previous game.
Kleindienst shines as a preparer, but not as an executor
However, after 20 minutes, coach Frank Schmidt’s team took control of the game and created chances. Tim Kleindienst won the ball and put it across to Denis Thomalla, who had returned to the starting XI after being suspended, but his shot went wide of the goal (24′).
Four minutes later Kleindienst was in dangerous action himself. After a cross from Jonas Föhrenbach, the top scorer in the second division headed the ball from six yards out, but also missed the goal (28′). It was the first chance of the “100 percent” brand, Kleindienst, who has scored nine goals in the past six games, should have given Heidenheim the lead at that moment.
Hartel quick action – and then St. Pauli’s defense shines
Instead, St. Pauli took advantage of the inattention of the hosts on the other side. After a throw-in, Marcel Hartel surprised FCH goalkeeper Kevin Müller in the near corner and made it 1-0 for Hamburg (41st). In the virtual table, the Hürzeler team would have moved four points closer to Heidenheim and would have kept the six-point deficit to HSV.
At the beginning of the second half, it became clear why St. Pauli had not only won the last nine games, but also kept six clean sheets. Heidenheim increased the pressure and the risk, but repeatedly bounced off the strong defense of the guests.
Best misses the last chance to equalize
However, the efforts of the hosts still led to dangerous action. Jan-Niklas Beste missed the next big chance for Heidenheim, but after Kevin Sessa’s cross he also missed the goal from close range (73′). After that, St. Pauli almost won the game, but David Otto only hit the crossbar with a long-range shot after a mistake by Kleindienst (76′).
Because only Otto had another chance in stoppage time and Heidenheim didn’t, it remained 1-0 for St. Pauli. At the beginning of his career as a professional coach, Hürzeler and his team matched the second division record of Karlsruher SC, which had won ten games in a row in 1986/87. And by the way, the Paulians are getting closer and closer to the promotion places.
Heidenheim in Hanover, St. Pauli against Brunswick
On the next matchday, 1. FC Heidenheim will meet Hannover 96 away (Friday, April 14th, 2023 at 6.30 p.m.). Two days later, FC St. Pauli welcomes Eintracht Braunschweig (1:30 p.m.).