Darmstadt 98 works out a valuable victory in a weak but exciting top game, while FC St. Pauli cannot win on the 11th matchday of the 2nd Bundesliga either. The Hamburgers are extending their crisis series and have long since lost sight of their city rivals at the top.
SV Darmstadt 98 - Fortuna Düsseldorf 1:0 (0:0)
SV Darmstadt 98 is still heavily involved in the fight for promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga. The southern Hesse won the top game against Fortuna Düsseldorf 1-0 (0-0) and secured second place in the table with 24 points. Patric Pfeiffer scored the winning goal for Lilien, who have been unbeaten in ten league games, in the 73rd minute.
With 15,850 spectators, the stadium at Böllenfalltor was sold out for the first time since the start of the renovation work. Because the guest fans ignited pyrotechnics before kick-off, the game started three minutes late.
Both teams failed to live up to the high expectations in the first half. The encounter largely took place between the penalty areas. A goal by Darmstadt's Marvin Mehlem (12th) was not recognized due to an offside position. After the change little changed in the statics of the game. Both teams largely neutralized each other. After Mehlem (72') failed from close range at Düsseldorf goalkeeper Florian Kastenmeier, the hosts managed to score the winning goal following the following corner kick with a header from Pfeiffer.
Eintracht Braunschweig - FC St. Pauli 2: 1 (0: 0)
Eintracht Braunschweig increased FC St. Pauli's crisis with a last-minute goal. The Hamburg team lost 2-1 (0-0) to a goal by Immanuel Pherai in the third minute of added time and have been waiting for a win for seven games. With eleven points, St. Pauli fell to 13th place in the table. Braunschweig, on the other hand, is eleventh after the fifth match without defeat with twelve points.
After the mixed start to the season, St. Pauli's coach Timo Schultz received the next setback after ten minutes: Captain Jackson Irvine had to leave the field after a collision with Braunschweig's Filip Benkovic. David Nemeth was also replaced by the Kiezkicker, who had been unsettled for a long time. On the other side, Eintracht was self-confident after the good series. Brian Behrendt had the best chance, but his free-kick was saved by goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj (34').
After the break, Eintracht striker Anthony Ujah had a great opportunity to take the lead. After going it alone, the Nigerian put the ball on the post (55'). The visitors' lead was all the more surprising: a long-range shot by Manolis Saliakas landed under the crossbar in the Braunschweig net, to the astonishment of goalkeeper Jasmin Fejzic (68th).
Eintracht was unimpressed and equalized after a pass from Luc Ihorst through Immanuel Pherai to a deserved 1-1 (77th). The Dutchman's second strike followed in injury time (90. 3).
Hansa Rostock - SC Paderborn 0:3 (0:1)
FC Hansa Rostock suffered their third defeat in their sixth home game of the season. Coach Jens Härtel's team lost 0:3 (0:1) to SC Paderborn and missed the opportunity to move further away from the relegation zone. Ron Schallenberg (19th minute), Robert Leipertz (80th) and Marvin Pieringer (88th) scored the goals for East Westphalia in front of 25,000 spectators in the Ostseestadion, who won again for the first time after two bankruptcies and consolidated their third place.
In a game dominated by tactics, the weakened hosts found themselves, as expected, on the defensive against the strongest offensive in the league. It went well for a good quarter of an hour, but then Schallenberg took advantage of the visitors' first chance to take the lead. This was preceded by an unsuccessful header defense by Hansa defender Frederic Ananaou, who practically served the ball to the goal scorer's foot.
After the restart, the hosts improved and impressed their opponents with early pressing and energetic duels. However, the efforts did not result in compelling opportunities to equalize. On the contrary: ten minutes before the end, Leipertz completed a brilliantly played counterattack for the preliminary decision for the playfully superior East Westphalia.
