FC St. Pauli

Head coach Alexander Blessin made two changes to the side that earned a 2-2 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt last week, Nikola Vasilj and Siebe Van der Heyden returning from suspension to replace Ben Voll and Lars Ritzka. Visitors Bochum, already consigned to relegation, also made two adjustments after the 4-1 home defeat against Mainz. Former St. Pauli defender Jakov Medić and Mats Pannewig came in for Ivan Ordets and Tom Krauß.

The Boys in Brown made the better start and fashioned the opening chances of the game from successive corners for Hauke Wahl and Morgan Guilavogui, whose headers both missed the target. Bochum threatened for the first time in the eighth minute when Stefan Passlack was denied by Nikola Vasilj from a tight angle. Two minutes later, they took the lead on the counterattack, Myron Boadu weaving his way past three defenders in the box and prodding the ball beyond Vasilj into the bottom right corner. Some poor positional play after losing possession and little resistance in the danger area translated into a goal that was conceded far too easily.

Blessin’s side could have been level from a Danel Sinani free-kick on 20, but Guilavogui’s header proved easy pickings for Bochum keeper Timo Horn. Soon after, Horn hit an attempted clearance straight to Afolayan 30 metres out, but with the goal at his mercy he lofted the ball way over the crossbar. Afolayan was in the action again seven minutes later when he set his sights on the far corner from the right edge of the box and Horn had to stretch to defuse the effort.

With 32 minutes gone, Blessin was forced to make a change when Passlack caught Siebe Van der Heyden accidentally on the head with his foot. The Belgian sustained a cut in the incident and had to be replaced by Lars Ritzka. The Boys in Brown continued to push forward but were unable to find a way through the visitors’ compact rearguard, leaving them a goal behind at the break.

Morgan Guilavogui squandered an opportunity to equalise midway through the first half.

Blessin responded at half-time with the introduction of Noah Weißhaupt for Oladapo Afolayan. From the off it was evident that his side were not about to give the game up, but the visitors continued to defend with aplomb. Then, with 52 minutes on the clock, Sinani hit a corner short to Treu, who returned the favour, and Sinani’s shot from a tight angle was blocked at the last second by Bernardo. Not long after that, Treu got forward to meet a Manolis Saliakas cross on the byline and his effort came back of the outside of the post, though Horn would have had it in any case.

The St. Pauli boss then made a double substitution, throwing on Adam Dźwigała and Johannes Eggestein for Manolis Saliakas and Danel Sinani for the final half-hour in a bid to end an impressive season with at least a point. That quest became even tougher soon after, however, when Boadu rounded off a Bochum counter with this second goal of the afternoon to double the advantage. The Netherlands international was allowed too much space to collect a Passlack pass by the penalty spot and beat Vasilj with a low drive into the bottom right corner.

For all their efforts, Blessin’s charges lacked penetration in the final third. The introduction of Scott Banks for Morgan Guilavogui in the closing stages made little difference, and it ended in defeat. After an impressive campaign that saw the Boys in Brown finish in 14^th place, the players were able to celebrate staying up with the fans.

FC St. Pauli

Vasilj - Nemeth, Wahl, Van der Heyden (Ritzka 32’) - Saliakas (Dźwigała 64’), Boukhalfa, Smith, Treu - Sinani (Eggestein 64’) - Guilavogui (Banks 76’), Afolayan (Weißhaupt 46’)

Head coach: Alexander Blessin

VfL Bochum

Horn - Oermann, Medić (Koscierski 84’), Bernardo - Passlack, Sissoko (Losilla 57’), Wittek - Bero, Pannewig (de Wit 76’) - Masouras (Miyoshi 76’), Boadu (Broschinski 76’)

Head coach: Dieter Hecking

Goals: 0-1 Boadu (10’), 0-2 Boadu (66’)

Referee: Felix Zwayer (Berlin)

Attendance: 29,546 (sold out

Photos: FC St. Pauli