The importance of Eric Smith for the game at FC St. Pauli is immense, especially due to his creative abilities. It is all the more remarkable that after the 2-0 win against Hertha BSC no one talked about the injured Swede, but almost everyone talked about Hauke Wahl.
Showed a strong performance: Hauke Wahl. IMAGO/Lobeca
The 29-year-old Hamburg native’s free transfer signing last summer was a success story from the start. Wahl immediately closed the gap left by Jakov Medic’s transfer to Ajax Amsterdam, defending solidly and calmly in the right position in the back three. Against the Berliners he demonstrated – not for the first time – that he can also replace St. Pauli’s secret game designer. In the end, the ex-Kiel player achieved a formidable pass rate of 94 percent and also gave the team immense stability. “It didn’t surprise me,” says center forward Johannes Eggestein. “It wasn’t the first time Hauke has filled this role.” Fabian Hürzeler is also pleased that “we hardly allowed anything to happen, the entire team, but also the entire back three, did a very good job.”
Reliability was a central point that the trainer had worked on during the previous week of training, and Wahl guaranteed this with an extremely calm demeanor. “We brought back the basics against Hertha that we hadn’t done in the last few weeks,” said the Smith representative.
There had recently been six goals conceded in just three halves in Kiel (4:3 after 3:0) and at Schalke (1:3), but on Sunday stability was a core feature even without the regular defense chief. Even in the phase after the break, when the offensive fireworks had ended and the opponent had more of the ball than before. Wahl praises: “At the beginning we hardly gave Hertha any opportunities to press us, but we always had good solutions.”
However, he draws particularly important insights from the second half, which was no longer so dominant, because: “We simply played more maturely than in the last few games. We stayed very calm and kept making mistakes. We noticed that we just have to access it and make it work.” And on Sunday that was also due to temporary defense chief Wahl, who will fill this role at least once again, next Saturday during the guest appearance in Nuremberg. Smith is expected to return after the international break if his adductor injury continues to heal optimally.
All clear for Mets
Then Karol Mets should also be available again. The examination of the central defender after his knee injury on Sunday revealed no damage to the ligaments.