Matchday 17: FC Sankt Pauli – VfL Bochum 1-1

WE BELIEVE

The squad is totally alive! This has been seen in recent games. We believe in ourselves and will do our utmost to leave behind at least two teams behind us. I’m sure we’ll play a much better round than the first round. How much better it will be, we will see it then…

Sören Gonther 17/12/16

Of course, it would be much better if the statement above had been certified with the, so hardly needed yesterday, victory, squad’s attitude during these 3 weeks of December is nevertheless enough proof that (finally) the Boys in Brown have started sharing the common (at least here) belief that, yes, we’re much better than the shit extravaganza that we have managed to present during almost the entire 1st round…

 

Last week’s BAMMM! at Fürth, had already cultivated increased expectations for this one. There was a quite optimistic mood in the venue right from the start and our incredible chance already on 3′ turned the flame of home into a bloody proper fire! Defensive Bochum screw up (Perthel, from the ones that usely WE do), on an attempt to return ball to the keeper, brilliantly exploited by Bouhaddouz who was chasing the ball – he made a magnificent move with the back of his left heel, sending the ball with a curvy orbit towards the goal, making a sadistic bounce in between, and both Riemann and Hoogland desperately chasing it…until the fuckin’ crossbar which saved the day for Bochum, AAAAAARRRGHHH! Tensed game, full of hard dwells and quite hard (getting occasionaly dirty) by the Bochum defense. First (and one of the very few) situation for Bochum, with a Mlapa header on 12′, repelled to corner by Heerwagen – replay showed ball going outside but Philipp was there anyway. EVERYTHING FROZE for some 20″ on 13′ when, after a head-2-head collision between Riemann and Buballa, Daniel fell on the ground unconscious. Complete silence, a huge relief when he started responding, expressed via a full-stadium YNWA and a standing ovation on his way out on the stretcher – no get wells needed, the boy is probably completely alright as we speak 🙂 Game on in the same motive until the negative shock on 20’… Bochum visit in our box, bad FCSP defending behavior and ball ended up (after a few intermediate stations) to Mlapa who immediately killed Heerwagen, FCSP and all of us (this fucker is a fuckin’ Cyborg, look at him after scoring, like nothing happened, can we have him for Xmas Ewald? 🙂 ). The situation on 28′ that followed is probably the decisive curve of the game. Red card to Perthel for an Olympic Medal Karate kick right in the face of Miyaichi (he’s alright as well, went on in the game) and Bochum down to 10 men. Just 3′ afterwards (31′) almost the equalizer with Gonther and Bouhaddouz together on the ball, inside the keeper’s box and Gonther sending the ball from < 5m over Riemann’s posts and me banging (gently 😀 ) my head on the venue wall. For the rest of the half it was all about FCSP besieging Bochum and the guests clearing the ball in any way they can but without any serious chances produced. HT whistle with 6′ injury time, score 0-1 but with the intense belief that, under these circumstances, something’s gotta give in the 2nd…

0-1 Bochum by the cold blooded killing machine on the right ^^

Squad didn’t meet the expectations in the 2nd half. All about FCSP pushing for something against a very organized 10-men-squad without getting anything. First situation actally belongs to Bochum with a Stiepermann acute angled shot from the left of the box being relatively easily blocked by Heerwagen, following a fast (and dangerous) counter attack on 54′. The first FCSP sign of live came on 65′(!) with a 15m Miyaichi shot (just into the box, to the left), easily blocked by Riemann as well. Same motive, initiative to FCSP but Bochum looking more dangerous when deciding to run a little in front. The 2nd BIG FCSP chance of the game on 74′ with Gonther again…targeting Riemann with the head, all alone from 5m… faith is good but focus is required as well dear Sören and the winter break will be a good chance for all to work on it 😉 We would probably leave the pitch heads down yesterday if it wasn’t Riemann to come as Deus Ex Machina and save the day, with an incredible fuck up (to be completely fair, this started from another Bochum defensive screw up, near the corner flag), practically serving a lost ball to Bouhaddouz who simply finished what couldn’t be missed! GOAL FOR FCSP, 1-1 on 76′, back in business and good to see shit happening to others for a change 🙂 FCSP gave it all in the final quarter while Bochum was starting to look a little shaky and were trying everything to hold us back but unfortunately we didn’t have what it takes to clear this, so (despite the pressure can recall only a Bouhaddouz unlucky shot on 78′) the final 1-1 looks overall fair enough…

Redemption on 76′ (image source: http://www.derwesten.de/)

Point & gamewise this is simply not good. Finally a chance to leave the last place since…I don’t remember when and it was lost. Also a failure to be creative and effective at the same time, even against a 10 men squad which doesn’t belong to the top of the league, something that without it we can simply go nowhere. We can start talking about this but… hold on for a moment, go back to the end of November and compare the overall situation. Two things: a) December maybe was not the month of the huge FCSP counter attack ( 🙂 ) but 5 points in 3 games is something that one month ago was simply…inconceivable, b) this squad is much more militant than it was some one month ago, everybody can see it and it’s actually not so difficult to do so – doesn’t take much to be better than the situation we were back then… one month ago was easy for everybody to dominate over us, yesterday Bochum needed quite a hard play just to hold their ground…

One way or another, the 1st round is over and, the way I see it, primary mission (reaching here without having been cut off from the others and keeping our chances alive) has been completed. Now we have almost 2 months ahead to regroup, reorganize and get ready for probably the toughest 2nd round of the last decade. This is the only good thing in the “endless” Bundesliga winter break, it’s so long that “miracles” can be created in between. We don’t need “miracles” but, imho, we should make a couple of reinforcement moves, especially in the midfield – no crazy moves that could derange team balance, just moves that would fill the missing puzzle. We have the will, we have the brains, we even have the cash if required as last AGM financial results suggest and, MOST OF ALL, we have FAITH! Forza Sankt Pauli!

Line Up:

Heerwagen

Hedenstad    L. Sobiech              Gonther      Keller

Hornschuh

                                                     Miyaichi        Sobota                     Choi      Buballa (Neudecker 17′ (Rosin 90′))

Bouhaddouz

Match goals:

0:1 Mlapa (20′, Right foot shot, Quaschner)

1:1 Bouhaddouz (76′, Left foot shot, Riemann ^^ (Kicker says Keller 🙂 )

Spectators: 29546 (in theory sold out, nevertheless HT season ticket holders who prefer to stay at home could lend their cards, this is Millerntor, not a fucking restaurant…)

Sankt Pauli cards: N/A (really good work in such an intense game)

Match highlights

Further reading:

• Kicker (German)
• Official website (German)
• Official website Photo Gallery
• Beebleblox (German)
• Nice Guys Sankt Pauli (German)
• St. Pauli Athens Club (Greek)
• Der Übersteiger (German)
• Stefan Groenveld (German, including extensive photo gallery of course)
• Kleiner Tod (German)