FC St. Pauli

Head coach Timo Schultz made four changes to the side that lost at Fortuna Düsseldorf at the weekend. Marcel Beifus, Connor Metcalfe, David Otto and Johannes Eggestein all came into the side, with Afeez Aremu and Lukas Daschner dropping to the bench. Etienne Amenyido is carrying a slight knock and missed out, while Betim Fazliji was serving the first of a three-match ban.

The Schultz XI made a busy start and carved out the first opportunities of note through dangerous balls in from the right by Manos Saliakas. His first delivery found the head of David Otto, who aimed a touch too high. Then, Johannes Eggestein arrived a moment too late to connect with the No2’s low cross into the middle.

At the other end, the visitors offered a threat largely from set pieces, in particular with corners to the near post. One, in the tenth minute, was unwittingly flicked on by Otto and his attempted clearance almost ended up in his own goal. Moments later, Kwasi Okyere Wriedt went close for the visitors. A lull in the play followed during which Kiel continued to try their luck on the break without ever posing a serious threat.

That changed in the 35^th minute when Lewis Holtby combined with Wriedt to create an opening in the box. The midfielder kept his composure and sent Nikola Vasilj the wrong way with his goalbound shot, but Eric Smith stepped in to make a crucial block.

Just five minutes later, the Boys in Brown had a golden opportunity to take the lead when Eggestein collected a low ball into the box with his back to goal and found Metcalfe with a quick turn. The Australian wasted no time getting a shot off, only to see Tim Schreiber throw up a hand to divert his effort over the bar for a corner. The Schultz XI stepped up the pressure before the interval but were unable to break the deadlock in the remaining minutes.

Both teams emerged unchanged for the second half. Nothing much happened until the 55^th minute when a corner found its way to Leart Paqarada, who blasted the ball back into the penalty area. Beifus steered it towards goal with a backheel, but his attempt came down on top of the net. Any threat the visitors posed continued to come from set plays. Patrick Erras tested Vasilj with a header at the near post following a corner from the left, but the keeper was alert to the danger and made the save.

In the last 25 minutes, the majority of the action unfolded in midfield, with no meaningful opportunities for either side until time added on. The only threat on the St. Pauli goal came from a Hauke Wahl free-kick that flew wide and would have been saved by Vasilj in any case. The referee blew his whistle for the final time soon after that and it ended in a goalless draw.

FC St. Pauli

Vasilj – Saliakas (Zander 90’), Beifus, Smith, Dźwigała, Paqarada – Metcalfe (Aremu 54’), Irvine, Hartel (Boukhalfa 90’) – Otto (Matanović 70’), Eggestein (Daschner 70’)

Head coach: Timo Schultz

Holstein Kiel

Schreiber – Schulz, Wahl, Lorenz – Erras – Reese (Arp 89’), Holtby, Kirkeskov – Skrzybski (Mühling 81’), Bartels (Porath 67’) – Wriedt (Korb 89’)

Head coach: Marcel Rapp

Tore: -

Yellow cards: Aremu, Beifus

Referee: Alexander Sather

Attendance: 29,546 (sold out)

Photos: FC St. Pauli/Witters