Training camp

HSV beaten 3-0 by St. Gallen

For St. Gallen scores Dereck Kutesa (24.), Jordi Quintella (38.) and Tranquillo Barnetta (58.).

Things just didn’t go to plan in the first friendly of 2019. Swiss Super League side FC. St. Gallen took a two-goal lead into the break in La Manga on Monday afternoon, before adding a third in the second half.

Gideon Jung celebrated his comeback against St. Gallen after more than six months on the sidelines.

NEW TACTICS, LOTS OF CHANGES

Pre-season, or winter pre-season as is the case now, is the perfect time to try out new ideas and tactical changes. That’s exactly how head coach Hannes Wolf approached Monday’s friendly against St. Gallen, sending his side out in an unfamiliar 3-5-2 formation. Gideon Jung, who made his return to action after missing the entire first half of the season through injury, was the middle man in a back three with David Bates and Patric Pfeiffer, flanked by wingbacks Khaled Narey (right) and Josha Vagnoman (left). Gotoku Sakai sat in front of the defence behind Christoph Moritz and Douglas Santos, while Lewis Holtby and Fiete Arp led the line in attack.

It was the Swiss side who seized the initiative early on, however, firing a warning shot through Vincent Sterro, before Dereck Kutesa capitalised on a loss of HSV possession to put his team 1-0 in front in the 24th minute. St. Gallen should have doubled their lead in the 32nd minute when Simone Rapp found himself with a free header on goal, but was unable to convert. Jordi Quintella made amends shortly afterwards when he fired a free kick under the HSV wall and into the back of the net. It was a struggle for Wolf’s side to create chances in the first half, despite having plenty of possession. Only a late half-chance from Fiete Arp came close to testing goalkeeper Dejan Stojanovic.

As promised, Wolf made wholesale changes to his team in the second half, but persisted with the same tactics. Alas, it was more of the same, as HSV struggled to assert themselves and find their way back into the game. Former Bundesliga midfielder Tranquillo Barnetta made it 3-0 on the hour mark with a fine finish from the edge of the box to complete a resounding victory for St. Gallen.

TEAMS

HSV 1st half: Mickel – Bates, Jung, Pfeiffer – Narey, Moritz, Sakai, Santos, Vagnoman – Holtby, Arp

HSV 2nd half: Behrens – David. Lacroix, Steinmann – Ito, Mangala, Janjicic, Jatta, Opoku – Wintzheimer, Lasogga

Goals: 0-1 Kutesa (24'), 0-2 Quintella (38'), 0-3 Barnetta (59')

Yellow cards: Jung (30')