ST PAULI - Dynamo Dresden
- PLAYER REVIEW
- Johannes Flum
With St Pauli's imminent change in form since the winter break, I decided to see how much of that was down to recent signing Johannes Flum. The 6' 3" Ex-Frankfurt and Freiburg midfielder arrived in Hamburg during the January window on a free transfer. with St Pauli struggling to gain frequent possession, it seemed to me a worthy addition. I felt that previous to Flum's signing St Pauli were struggling to run the midfield, sitting too deep and allowing pressure from most teams it was if they were enticing a constant attack. I was hoping Flum would work in cohesion with Nehrig to ensure the second ball was won, something which I believed was costing the Boys in Brown to lose momentum in the poor run of form earlier in the season. A game against Dresden was always going to be hard but following the Braunschweig game and how much of a change in performance it was, I couldn't predict anything. With Dresden sat in 6th place but not finding consistency in their recent matches it needed either of the teams to really claim the 3 points which were on offer.
Originally, St Pauli took a step back and allowed Dresden to progress forward. Nothing really formed and on occasion Flum intervened, nothing too intense. Eventually, the Millerntor started to wake, seemingly after remembering last weeks' success on their travels. Flum and Nehrig often switching duties with one sitting back and the other offering their services to the likes of Sahin, Choi and Sobota. Around the 25 minute mark a foul drawn in my Sobiech a few yards from the corner flag gave Flum his first real chance since joining in early January. A nicely swept ball from Sobota wasn't dealt with efficiently by Dresden as the ball fell to the goal-scarce 29 year old. A scramble of players blocked his chance to make his mark for his new club as the ball deflected, Nehrig, his partner in the middle of the park had a chance but couldn't gather his composure to convert from the around penalty spot. Both players posing a threat early on in the game. Moments later the first goal of the game appeared from nowhere as Choi was gifted the ball courtesy of a loose pass from the Dresden midfield. A smart and calm finish from one of St Pauli's most gifted technicians, taking it into the box and slotting it out of reach of an understandably frustrated Marvin Schwäbe. After the goal Flum continued in balancing out the Hamburg outfits' dominance in the centre of the pitch. Frequently you would find him floating around the edge of St Pauli's box, tracking threats and hunting down any sniff of a loose ball. I found his presence alone in this area enough to deter Dresden from getting into a potentially dangerous area. The first half was reasonably tame for St Pauli, the home fans encouraging them to unnerve Dresden, who resulted a lot of the time to passing around the back. Flum had a comfortable half with no major influence on the game, at the same time neither did he have much to attend to.
Flum was to be partnered with Buchtmann in the second half as Nehrig was replaced. Buchtmann with a fresh pair of legs to accompany Flum who had a reasonably comfortable first 45 minutes. The Millerntor turf was fairly well churned up coming into the game and with every minute it was only getting worse. Both teams struggling to find the benefits in playing to feet, however St Pauli seemed to have the advantage in the dawn of the second half. The second goal of the game came after Dresden failed to clear their lines at about 60 minutes in. Missing their window of opportunity to remove the threat, Sobota applied pressure to the away team's flaky defence. Gathering the ball on the edge of the box the Polish attacker knocked a loose ball onto a waiting Bouhaddouz, who spotted a lurking Sahin, surprisingly left free in the box. Dresden had left the man in form unattended with the ball, as he instinctively tucked it in the bottom right corner, easily past Marvin Schwäbe, who was left rather unimpressed with his back line.
The new signing didn't have a lot to participate in during the last 30 minutes. A lot of his duty was to stay-put and remain just in front of Hornschuh and Sobiech who were equally having, a fantastic game. On a handful of occasions Flum did have the ball at his feet, he showed good composure and control. The game was dying out and the visitors became desperate, at times Flum did look tired and a tad stretched. Considering the little amount of game time he has had over the last year I think it would be harsh to criticise him. However, due to the fact that Dresden appeared lethargic and sloppy as the final whistle came nearer, St Pauli fan's had little to worry about. As the game came to a close, the home fans cheered with complete appraisal for their teams' solid performance. A surprisingly comfortable victory, with the hosts coming out 2 goals to nil.
Do I believe that Flum was influential in this victory? Not directly, but I do believe that he certainly added something to the team which they have recently been absent of, a precise and composed midfielder. Flum did well, and so far has settled the ongoing issue in the middle, where St Pauli previously had a void. A lot of possession was lost in the middle where the team couldn't hold the ball. The forwards were not getting the service they needed, and the defensive line were not allowed any rest from surges of pressure from recent encounters. I hope Flum becomes the anchor required, but after only 2 games it's easy to get carried away. I can say, if the team continue this run of form or at least this style of play, it will be a great transformation to the unplanned suffering pre-winter.
I would like to add before finishing that Sobiech performed valiantly. The Dresden forwards won next to no aerial duels against the captain and he was even better delivering his clean tackles. Hornschuh also partnering at centre-half gave 110% to reward themselves with only the teams' third clean sheet of the campaign. Sahin, as well stood out against the rest. Another goal for the young Turk, but more importantly a superb showcase of his efforts on both the attacking front and chasing down of everything he sniffed. Much similar to the Braunschweig game, a now frequent performer for the Boys in Brown.
Flum was to be partnered with Buchtmann in the second half as Nehrig was replaced. Buchtmann with a fresh pair of legs to accompany Flum who had a reasonably comfortable first 45 minutes. The Millerntor turf was fairly well churned up coming into the game and with every minute it was only getting worse. Both teams struggling to find the benefits in playing to feet, however St Pauli seemed to have the advantage in the dawn of the second half. The second goal of the game came after Dresden failed to clear their lines at about 60 minutes in. Missing their window of opportunity to remove the threat, Sobota applied pressure to the away team's flaky defence. Gathering the ball on the edge of the box the Polish attacker knocked a loose ball onto a waiting Bouhaddouz, who spotted a lurking Sahin, surprisingly left free in the box. Dresden had left the man in form unattended with the ball, as he instinctively tucked it in the bottom right corner, easily past Marvin Schwäbe, who was left rather unimpressed with his back line.
The new signing didn't have a lot to participate in during the last 30 minutes. A lot of his duty was to stay-put and remain just in front of Hornschuh and Sobiech who were equally having, a fantastic game. On a handful of occasions Flum did have the ball at his feet, he showed good composure and control. The game was dying out and the visitors became desperate, at times Flum did look tired and a tad stretched. Considering the little amount of game time he has had over the last year I think it would be harsh to criticise him. However, due to the fact that Dresden appeared lethargic and sloppy as the final whistle came nearer, St Pauli fan's had little to worry about. As the game came to a close, the home fans cheered with complete appraisal for their teams' solid performance. A surprisingly comfortable victory, with the hosts coming out 2 goals to nil.
Do I believe that Flum was influential in this victory? Not directly, but I do believe that he certainly added something to the team which they have recently been absent of, a precise and composed midfielder. Flum did well, and so far has settled the ongoing issue in the middle, where St Pauli previously had a void. A lot of possession was lost in the middle where the team couldn't hold the ball. The forwards were not getting the service they needed, and the defensive line were not allowed any rest from surges of pressure from recent encounters. I hope Flum becomes the anchor required, but after only 2 games it's easy to get carried away. I can say, if the team continue this run of form or at least this style of play, it will be a great transformation to the unplanned suffering pre-winter.
I would like to add before finishing that Sobiech performed valiantly. The Dresden forwards won next to no aerial duels against the captain and he was even better delivering his clean tackles. Hornschuh also partnering at centre-half gave 110% to reward themselves with only the teams' third clean sheet of the campaign. Sahin, as well stood out against the rest. Another goal for the young Turk, but more importantly a superb showcase of his efforts on both the attacking front and chasing down of everything he sniffed. Much similar to the Braunschweig game, a now frequent performer for the Boys in Brown.
No comments:
Post a Comment