FC St. Pauli dropped more precious points in their promotion push on Friday night, drawing 1-1 away at Hannover 96. It was the club's fifth draw of the season and their fifth consecutive league match without defeat, leaving them seventh in the 2. Bundesliga with 11 points from eight games, now 11 points behind leaders Hertha BSC. Their record shows two wins, five draws, and one loss from those eight matches.
Abdoulie Ceesay, the team's top scorer with four goals this term, put the visitors ahead in first-half stoppage time. But Husseyn Chakroun equalised for Hannover just three minutes after the restart. Ceesay hit the post in the 73rd minute as St. Pauli pushed for a winner that never came. "It feels like lost points," said head coach Marcel Rapp.
Transition issues persist
Despite having the better of the game and creating clearer chances, St. Pauli couldn't find a decisive second goal. Captain David Nemeth echoed the frustration. "We are not satisfied with the point. Our ambition is to win every game. We need to talk about the problems with the ball." Those problems were most evident in transition. While St. Pauli won possession back frequently, they often failed to play cleanly out of pressure or exploit the spaces left by Hannover's aggressive, long-ball approach.
Squad consistency
Marcel Rapp stuck with his 3-5-2 formation. Eric Smith played as the central defender in the back three, while Lars Ritzka and Nemeth completed the line. Tomoya Andō returned to the bench after serving a suspension, but Marcus Mathisen and Scott Banks were absent from the squad. The recent form of two wins and three draws from the last five is solid, but the sheer number of draws is hampering their climb. The team has scored 11 and conceded nine goals overall this season. The next opportunity comes quickly with a trip to bottom side SV Darmstadt 98 on Friday, 23 October. A look at the upcoming fixtures shows key points are there for the taking in the weeks ahead. The unbeaten run also includes recent results: the 2-0 win over Karlsruher SC on 11 October, the 1-1 draw with Borussia Mönchengladbach on 3 October, the 1-1 draw at Energie Cottbus on 20 September, the 1-0 victory against VfL Wolfsburg on 12 September, and the 2-2 draw at Arminia Bielefeld on 4 September.
First reported at Bild Sport
