St. Pauli vs Wolfsburg preview: Crucial bottom-half clash
St. Pauli
Since their promotion back to Germany's top tier this summer, St. Pauli have struggled at home, managing only a single point from three matches at Millerntor-Stadion. Their overall record of five losses in their opening seven games marks an unwelcome new low for the club in Bundesliga history.
Last week’s narrow defeat to Borussia Dortmund was particularly painful; after Eric Smith’s 78th-minute goal appeared to secure a draw, Dortmund struck again, leaving St. Pauli stuck in 16th place, three points away from safety.
Two consecutive losses, before and after the international break, have disrupted what little momentum they had, with all four of their points collected in a brief two-game period.
Returning to Hamburg, St. Pauli now risks going nine consecutive Bundesliga home games without a win—a stretch that began several years ago and would set yet another unfortunate record. The Kiezkicker are also yet to score at home this season, making Saturday's match a crucial opportunity to turn their fortunes around.
Encouragingly, St. Pauli have historically fared well against Wolfsburg, having lost only one of their 14 meetings across the top two divisions and remaining unbeaten in their last four Bundesliga matchups.
Team News
Manager Alexander Blessin faces multiple selection headaches this weekend, with three goalkeepers being missing: Soren Ahlers, Sascha Burchert, and Ben Alexander Voll, who is recovering from a broken jaw. Nikola Vasilj is set to start in goal for the hosts.
Additionally, midfielder Connor Metcalfe and forwards Elias Saad and Simon Zoller remain unavailable due to injury. Captain Jackson Irvine is expected to pair up with Robert Wagner in midfield, while Johannes Eggestein leads the attack.
Wolfsburg
Like St. Pauli, Wolfsburg also face a challenging DFB-Pokal matchup next week against Dortmund, with the hosts taking on RB Leipzig—but their immediate focus will be on securing a win in Hamburg.
In their previous match, Wolfsburg went up 1-0 but ultimately lost 4-2 to Werder Bremen, conceding three goals in a critical 20-minute stretch in the second half. This marked their league-high 11 points dropped from winning positions this season.
Their disciplinary issues have further complicated matters; following Patrick Wimmer's recent red card against Bremen, Wolfsburg has now accumulated the most yellow cards (23) and shares the top spot for red cards in the Bundesliga. As a result, they’ll be missing two important players through suspension this weekend.
Now in 13th place, Ralph Hasenhüttl's side could end the weekend level on points with St. Pauli if they lose on Saturday. Defensive struggles have been a key issue, as their 16 goals conceded represent the club's poorest defensive start to a Bundesliga season.
On the attacking side, Wolfsburg has found the net in each of their last eight league games, a streak extending back to last season. Their 15 goals across seven matchdays this year also match a club record set in 2009 when Wolfsburg held Die Meisterschale.
Team News
Wolfsburg will be significantly affected by a long list of absentees this week, with multiple injuries compounded by the suspensions of key players Maximilian Arnold and Patrick Wimmer. The loss of Wimmer is especially impactful; since he joined Wolfsburg, the team has averaged only 0.9 points and one goal per Bundesliga game in his absence, compared to 1.4 points and 1.8 goals per game when he’s on the pitch.
An overcrowded treatment room sees Bartosz Bialek (knee), Lovro Majer (ankle), Lukas Nmecha (groin), Kevin Paredes (foot), Rogerio (knee), Mattias Svanberg (ankle), and Aster Vranckx (thigh) all sidelined, requiring Ralph Hasenhüttl to rely on a makeshift starting XI.