FC St. Pauli

Head coach Alexander Blessin named an unchanged side after the 2-0 defeat at Mainz, acknowledging a decent showing that was not reflected by the scoreline. There were two changes on the bench, however, where fit-again Manolis Saliakas took the place of Connor Metcalfe, who was unavailable. Carlo Boukhalfa also failed a late fitness test after picking up a knock in training during the week and was replaced by Andreas Albers. Dortmund boss Niko Kovač was forced to make one adjustment from 6-0 home win over Union Berlin after Julian Ryerson fell ill. His place in the starting lineup went to Yan Couto. Julian Brandt returned to the squad after recovering from a tight muscle, though Julien Duranville missed out.

In an electric atmosphere the Blessin XI hit the ground running and Noah Weißhaupt twice created space on the right to deliver the ball into the box. Unfortunately, he found no takers both times. That changed in the sixth minute when another Weißhaupt cross was met by Elias Saad, whose close-range header looped over the crossbar.

The visitors responded to that initial warning shot by seizing control of the game, but the next goalscoring opportunity fell to FCSP skipper Jackson Irvine, who met a Weißhaupt corner first time on the volley, only to get underneath it and see the ball clear the crossbar by some distance. Dortmund continued to hog the possession, forcing the Blessin XI to resort to the jab, but the visitors had to wait until midway through the half for their first clear-cut opportunity. Karim Adeyemi headed a Pascal Groß cross towards goal, but it proved no problem for Nikola Vasilj. Almost immediately, Lars Ritzka whipped the ball into the box for Weißhaupt, who came within a whisker of getting on the end of it.

In the 34^th minute the sell-out crowd saw the Boys in Brown fashion the next opportunity. An Eric Smith free-kick sneaked through the box to the back post, where Hauke Wahl directed his shot wide of the target. Two minutes later the visitors replied with an effort of their own, Adeyemi laying the ball off for Sabitzer to volley well over the top. The biggest chance of the half was reserved for Adeyemi moments before the interval when he latched onto a long ball forward and steered a shot a few centimetres past the far post.

FCSP forward Noah Weißhaupt caught the eye in the first half.

The visitors started the second half the better, creating pressure early on and taking the lead with the opening chance five minutes in when Adeyemi brought down a high ball and went for goal with a shot on the turn. His attempt eventually found its way to Serhou Guirassy, who was left the simple task of sliding the ball over the line from close range. And the visitors added a second eight minutes later. A St. Pauli free-kick broke down when Maximilian Beier hoicked the ball clear for Adeyemi to chase. The Dortmund forward shrugged off the challenge of Philipp Treu and then wrongfooted Smith in the box before steering a clinical finish beyond Vasilj to double his side's advantage.

Dortmund's double strike left its mark on the Blessin XI, whose attacking moves lacked the precision of the first half, resulting in a dearth of chances. Dortmund were content to sit back and defend and gave very little away in the process. Up front, the unmarked Adeyemi squandered an opportunity to make it three from ten metres after receiving the ball from Beier.

Blessin responded to the deficit by introducing first Abdoulie Ceesay and then Manolis Saliakas and Danel Sinani in a bid to generate more attacking threat. His plan never really came off, however, and it remained a half low on highlights, the only exception being an angled drive from Sinani four minutes from time that was palmed away by Gregor Kobel. It was to prove the final attempt on goal worthy of note and after four minutes of time added on referee Tobias Stieler blew his whistle to end the proceedings.

FC St. Pauli

Vasilj – Van der Heyden, Wahl, Nemeth – Ritzka (Saliakas 83'), Irvine, Smith, Treu – Saad (Afolayan 57'), Eggestein (Ceesay 73'), Weißhaupt (Sinani 83')

Head coach: Alexander Blessin

Borussia Dortmund

Kobel – Bensebaini (Svensson 73'), Schlotterbeck, Can, Couto– Groß, Sabitzer, Reyna (Chukwuemeka 73') – Beier (Özcan 89'), Guirassy (Brandt 89'), Adeyemi (Gittens 83')

Head coach: Niko Kovač

Goals: 0-1 Serhou Guirassy (50'), 0-2 Karim Adeyemi (58')

Yellow cards: Schlotterbeck, Adeyemi

Referee: Tobias Stieler

Attendance: 29,546 (sold out)

Photos: FC St. Pauli/Witters