HIMMELMANN: "IMPORTANT TO GO IN AT HALF-TIME WITH A CLEAN SHEET"
Tuesday, 03. October 2017, 10:12 Uhr
After the 2-0 success at Eintracht Braunschweig there could be little doubt about the key to the win. Robin Himmelmann kept his side in the game, especially in the first half, with a string of sensational saves, including one double stop from the penalty spot. Yet for all the plaudits, our No30 is remaining modest.
When the final whistle went on Sunday there was unanimous agreement that the 28-year-old goalkeeper had laid the foundation for the win with his reflex saves. "We can thank the football gods and Robin Himmelmann, of course," said head coach Olaf Janßen after the game. Braunschweig had pushed for the opening goal with all their might in the first half, but there was no getting post the man between the St. Pauli posts.
Himmelmann remained modest on Monday evening, saying: "We didn't play the way we wanted in the first half, so in the end we're happy to have taken three points." The keeper was matter-of-fact in his description of the penalty: "It's a very difficult situation when you get a penalty against you so early in the game. I had an idea which corner Hernandez would go for but the penalty wasn't very well placed, so I had to parry it first. Then I had to get back up quickly and thankfully I was able to save the rebound as well." Asked whether it was key to the win, he replied: "I don't know. It was important in general to go in at half-time with a clean sheet. That gave us the chance to come back in the second half."
Janßen, however, was fulsome in his praise for the performance of his goalkeeper: "It started with the low shot into the corner right at the beginning. Normally you don't save those but Robin kept it out with an outstanding reaction save. Then there was the double chance from the penalty and the rebound. We know Robin has great reflexes but that was something else."
Looking ahead to the next two weeks, Himmelmann spoke briefly about his expectations. "It's hard to say why things have gone better away from home so far," he said. He remains upbeat as far as the next home game is concerned, however. " We'll be looking to build on the second-half performance against Braunschweig when we play Kaiserslautern after the international break. We have to be there from the off because Lautern will fight. They need every point they can get in their current situation. I'm confident we'll give a decent performance on Friday the 13th."
Photos: Witters
