St Pauli will hope to carry their positive end to 2024 into 2025 and pull away from the Bundesliga's relegation zone when they host struggling Eintracht Frankfurt at Millerntor-Stadion on Saturday.
The home team beat Stuttgart 1-0 on December 21 in their final game before the winter break but are fifth last in 14th place, while their opponents are third with 27 points after 15 matchweeks and succumbed to a 3-1 defeat against Mainz 05 last time out on December 21.
Match preview
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Though Stuttgart created five big chances, Kiezkicker should be praised for matching that figure during their clash, and the fact they beat last season's Bundesliga runners-up should not be underestimated.
Head coach Alexander Blessin admitted that his side had to position their defensive line deeper than they would have liked against Stuttgart, but he was still delighted with the performance, saying: "We were really aggressive in the right areas and had some good turnovers. The goal was a huge relief.
"You can't keep Stuttgart away from your goal for the entire 90 minutes, that's clear, and we defended a little deeper, which means they'll always create chances. The way we defended and threw ourselves in the way of every ball was simply magnificent."
St Pauli's record in recent weeks has been mixed given they have won three and lost four of their last seven matches in the league, though two of those losses came against giants Bayern Munich and champions Bayer Leverkusen.
Blessin's side have been among the best defensive outfits in the Bundesliga, with the club's five clean sheets only bettered by RB Leipzig and Bayern.
The hosts have only won once in their seven top-flight fixtures at home this campaign, and alarmingly scored just one goal in that period.
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Opponents Eintracht Frankfurt will be concerned that they failed to overcome Mainz given the victors were reduced to 10 men in the 21st minute when they were only winning 1-0.
Boss Dino Toppmoller's side had looked like mounting a genuine title challenge earlier this term, but they have fallen nine points behind leaders Bayern.
Toppmoller aired his frustration in the aftermath of the defeat against Mainz, telling reporters: "The result feels strange. We had a great opening period, great energy on the pitch and could've led 2-0 after 15 minutes. Suddenly we're 2-0 down, though.
"We tried everything, kept pushing, brought on fresh legs, changed things around and had some gilt-edged chances. Overall we did a lot of things really well. We're conceding goals too easily – the third goal was also avoidable."
The Eagles' form is concerning given they have lost four and drawn one of their past five fixtures in all competitions, conceding 13 goals while finding the back of the net on six occasions.
Eintracht Frankfurt have also been beaten in their last three away games by a cumulative score of 8-3, and they have kept just one clean sheet in their 16 most recent matches on the road in the Bundesliga.
Team News
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St Pauli's extensive injury list is set to clear up by the end of January, but they could still be without forward Elias Saad, centre-back Karol Mets and midfielder Robert Wagner for a few more days.
Jackson Irvine and Carlo Boukhalfa have regularly featured in midfield and are likely to do so again on Saturday, though Connor Metcalfe will not make the matchday squad.
Striker Simon Zoller has also been ruled out, so expect Johannes Eggestein to start up front alongside forwards Oladapo Afolayan and Morgan Guilavogui.
Goalkeepers Sascha Burchert, Soren Ahlers and Ben Alexander Voll, as well as wing-back Lars Ritzka, will not play on the weekend.
Nikola Vasilj may start between the posts, while wing-backs Philipp Treu and Manolis Saliakas could be stationed either side of a back three.
As for the visitors, they come into the clash with concerns only about centre-back Aurele Amenda, though he is scheduled to return in February.
Rasmus Kristensen, Robin Koch and Arthur Theate are likely to start in defence, while Tuta, Ellyes Skhiri and Hugo Larsson may feature in a double pivot.
St Pauli possible starting lineup:
Vasilj; Wahl, Smith, Nemeth; Saliakas, Irvine, Boukhalfa, Treu; Afolayan, Eggestein, Guilavogui
Eintracht Frankfurt possible starting lineup:
Trapp; Kristensen, Koch, Theate; Knauff, Skhiri, Tuta, Larsson, Brown; Ekitike, Marmoush
We say: St Pauli 0-2 Eintracht Frankfurt
Despite the visitors' struggles prior to the winter break, it is difficult to look past the fact St Pauli are unlikely to show their best level due to their numerous injury absentees.
Additionally, Eintracht Frankfurt have still been one of the league's best sides this season, and they may finally keep a clean sheet considering their hosts' offensive woes.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Lewis Nolan
