FC St. Pauli

Head coach Timo Schultz was forced to make a couple of changes to the side that beat Heidenheim 1-0 before the international break. Eric Smith was ruled out by a calf injury, while Jackson Irvine was rested having just recovered from Covid-19. Afeez Aremu replaced Smith in holding midfield, and Finn Ole Becker took Irvine's place on the edge of the diamond. Schultz also made a third change, bringing in Luca Zander at right-back for Adam Dźwigała. His counterpart Jens Härtel opted for four adjustments to the side that won 1-0 at Sandhausen last time out, though former St. Pauli man John Verhoek, Rostock's leading scorer with 15 goals, made his customary appearance in the starting lineup.

Hansa began brightly and had the first half-chance of the game just 65 seconds in, though Nico Neidhart's shot fizzed well wide. The ball did find the net 57 seconds later when Simon Rhein slotted home from the edge of the box. It went to VAR and referee Benjamin Brand correctly disallowed the goal for a foul by Verhoek on Jakov Medić in the build-up. The Boys in Brown stepped up a gear in response. Daniel-Kofi Kyereh swept the ball out wide to Leart Paqarada, who delivered a low ball to the near post. Guido Burgstaller got a toe to it, but Rostock keeper Markus Kolke was alert to the danger.

Rostock had the next chance, Verhoek shrugging off the attentions of Paqarada to get a shot in, but Nikola Vasilj made the save. Things began to get a bit tasty after that, with Verhoek and Ryan Malone picking up yellow cards in quick succession for a couple of agricultural challenges. Burgstaller then headed a Paqarada free-kick just over before smashing a shot narrowly past the angle from a tight angle. Rostock hit back almost immediately, Svante Ingelsson cutting the ball back for Hanno Behrens to shoot. Fortunately, his effort flew straight into the arms of Vasilj.

It had been a very intense opening quarter of an hour with chances at both ends and emotions running high. But then the chances suddenly dried up, though the tackles continued to fly in. After a decent passing move involving several players ten minutes before the break, Simon Makienok laid a neat ball off for Kyereh, who went for broke but sliced his shot wide of the target. Calogero Rizzuto hit a free-kick into the wall and then Vasilj found himself back in the spotlight, pulling off a smart reflex save to keep out a Neidhart effort that took a deflection off Afeez Aremu. Just before the interval, Rhein was denied by a brilliant lunge from Medić and then Vasilj kept out a shot from Ingelsson to send the two sides in goalless at the break.

Marcel Beifus was involved in a running battle with Rostock's John Verhoek all evening.

Schultz made one change for the second period, introducing centre-back James Lawrence for Finn Ole Becker and switching from a back four to a back three. Lawrence also took the captain's armband from Paqarada. The game struggled to get going again after the restart due to a series of niggling fouls. Rostock made the slightly better start, however, some wayward passing preventing the Boys in Brown from getting anywhere near the opposition goal.

Hansa were making a better job of it overall and took the lead on the hour when Rizzuto dispatched a low ball into the box after a rapid counterattack. Verhoek narrowly failed to make contact, but Neidhart was lurking at the back post and found the net from the tightest of angles. Schultz soon responded with a double switch, Rico Benatelli and Lukas Daschner replacing Marcel Beifus and Afeez Aremu, a change that saw the Boys in Brown revert to a back four.

The Schultz XI stepped up their attacking efforts but continued to draw a blank against a rock-solid Rostock rearguard until the 70^th minute when Daschner headed a Paqarada corner just wide of the goal from a central position. Paqarada went even closer three minutes later, curling a  wonderful free-kick a whisker past the left-hand upright. Simon Makienok made way for Igor Matanović 11 minutes from time, but it was Hansa who had the chance to put the result beyond reasonable doubt on 86 when a powerful effort from Malone looked to be on its way in until it struck Lawrence on the back. That was the last action of note and it ended in a 1-0 win for the home side.

Hansa Rostock

Kolke - Rizzuto (Riedel 79'), Becker, Malone, Rossbach, Neidhart (Meier 79') - Behrens, Fröde, Rhein (Rother 88') - Ingelsson (Duljević 88'), Verhoek (Sikan 68')

Head coach: Jens Härtel

FC St. Pauli

Vasilj - Zander, Beifus (Daschner 65'), Medić, Paqarada - Aremu (Benatelli 65'), Becker (Lawrence 46'), Hartel (Buchtmann 87'), Kyereh - Makienok (Matanović 79') , Burgstaller

Head coach: Timo Schultz

Goals: 1-0 Neidhart (59')

Yellow cards: Verhoek, Malone

Referee: Benjamin Brand (Unterspiesheim)

Attendance: 24,470

Photos: Witters