Hertha gives away victory very late
St. Pauli comes very close to returning to the Bundesliga in the hate duel
April 26, 2024, 8:28 p.m
FC St. Pauli continues its impressive path towards the Bundesliga. In the high-security duel against relegation candidate Hansa Rostock, the Kiezkickers collect three more points for promotion. Hertha BSC missed the win against Hannover 96 in the last minute.
FC St. Pauli – FC Hansa Rostock 1:0 (0:0)
FC St. Pauli is taking big steps towards promotion to the Bundesliga. Coach Fabian Hürzeler’s team won 1-0 (0-0) against Hansa Rostock at the start of the 31st matchday, took the lead in the table and, in the worst case scenario, will end the season in the relegation place. The explosive duel between the two rival fan camps remained without any violent incidents in the stands until the final whistle.
St. Pauli, who celebrated Australian Jackson Irvine’s goal (52nd), can no longer slip to fourth place. This is occupied by Hamburger SV, which has 14 points less than St. Pauli. Fortuna Düsseldorf, which takes third place and on Saturday evening (8.30 p.m./Sky and Sport1) plays at Schalke 04, is currently eight points behind Hürzeler’s team.
After a weak first half, St. Pauli turned things up. Irvine prevailed from a corner and scored with a header for Hamburg, which only exacerbated Rostock’s worries in the bottom of the table. Hansa could slip into a direct relegation spot later this weekend. With the opening goal behind them, St. Pauli remained in control. Rostock rarely came close to the goal.
Hansa fans had to make do with Dixi toilets because of the riots in the last duel in the Hamburg neighborhood. The sanitary facilities for the guest block in the north stand, which had been devastated the previous year, remained closed this time.
Hertha BSC – Hannover 96 1:1 (0:0)
Hannover 96 also took away Hertha BSC’s last theoretical chance of promotion. The Lower Saxony team made it 1-1 (1-0) thanks to a goal from Enzo Leopold in stoppage time. The Hertha winning streak in the final spurt of the season demanded by coach Pal Dardai has already come to an end. Marc Oliver Kempf (13th minute) put the Berlin team in the lead.
However, the Hanoverians no longer have a realistic chance of returning to the Bundesliga, nine points behind Fortuna Düsseldorf in third place. Hertha is still one point behind 96 in seventh place and definitely has to plan for another season in the lower house of football.
Kempf gave Berlin the lead in the early stages in front of 59,192 spectators with a powerful header from a corner from Palko Dardai. Afterwards, the Berliners failed to put any further pressure on Hanover. The guests had the better chance of equalizing. Lars Gindorf (20th) and Louis Schaub (42nd) each hit the crossbar. In the second half, Hertha was able to switch to management mode with impunity for a long time. Hannover’s efforts to gain a point were too harmless. But then Leopold struck with a header.