Leipzig down relegation-threatened St. Pauli to secure Champions League qualification

[p]An opportunity to close out a successful first season under Ole Werner knocked for Die Roten Bullen, who made a fast start yet somehow failed to open the scoring in an eighth-minute scramble.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/diomande-yan/0p2ORrJi/"]Yan Diomande[/a] picked out [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/baumgartner-christoph/rqcu4a9O/"]Christoph Baumgartner[/a] inside the area, but both he and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/gruda-brajan/4EjPxBOf/"]Brajan Gruda[/a] on the rebound were denied from point-blank range by [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/vasilj-nikola/zJ3yuRdk/"]Nikola Vasilj[/a], before the offside [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/baku-bote/AVMjVAqt/"]Ridle Baku[/a] missed an open goal from little more than a yard out.[/p][p]The visitors settled from there, and they came close to breaking the deadlock themselves when [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/smith-eric/remhb0a6/"]Eric Smith[/a]’s free-kick whistled just wide of the target.[/p][p]Alexander Blessin’s men offered considerable threat on the break, and that ought to have yielded the opener when [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/hountondji-andreas/WSUojcHs/"]Andréas Hountondji[/a] laid on for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/kaars-martijn/xnYgdAQ0/"]Martijn Kaars[/a], but he could only rifle his first-time effort off the crossbar.[/p][p]The [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/st-pauli/ILyJuN3g/"]St Pauli[/a] forward paid a heavy price for that miss, as in the final minute of the half, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/rb-leipzig/KbS1suSm/"]Leipzig[/a] hit the front.[/p][image alt="Match stats" id="703958de-fd63-4fd1-ac5c-b90177922562" credit-line="Opta by StatsPerform" guid="de82c424-c326-49c3-9821-53b40144183a" original-width="1080" original-height="1080" /][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/raum-david/2XVqEh8k/"]David Raum[/a]’s corner dropped favourably for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/schlager-xaver/M1bcCLIU/"]Xaver Schlager[/a] on the six-yard line, and the midfielder duly turned home via the underside of the bar in his final home games for the club.[/b][/p][p]That proved the ultimate sucker-punch for Die Kiezkicker, who were fortunate not to fall two behind within 10 minutes of the restart.[/p][p]Baumgartner released Diomande, who in turn teed up [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ouedraogo-assan/bs71GRSt/"]Assan Ouédraogo[/a], but the young midfielder could only direct his strike against the base of the post.[/p][p][b]Just moments later, another Raum corner caught the visitors out when the unmarked [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/orban-willi/WQdSnUfq/"]Willi Orbán[/a] got ahead of the front post and steered a brilliant header across goal and into the far corner. [/b][/p][p]St Pauli threatened to unravel from there, with Gruda seeing a goal chalked off for offside before Baumgartner smashed over from a promising position.[/p][p][b]Leipzig had looked exceedingly comfortable, but [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ceesay-abdoulie/Y5AWMRtT/"]Abdoulie Ceesay[/a] cast the result into doubt when he surged clear of the home defence and slotted home a goal that halved the visitors’ arrears. [/b][/p][embed guid="3e81e365-907c-4db9-a611-d7a161072eeb" url="https://x.com/RBLeipzig_EN/status/2053134403472085193" social-type="twitter" /][p]That denied Die Roten Bullen just a second clean sheet in 14 league matches, but they held on for a fifth successive home victory regardless.[/p][p]It’s a damaging defeat for St Pauli, though, with their winless run reaching nine matches ahead of next week’s potentially decisive clash with 16th-placed [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/wolfsburg/nwkTahLL/"]VfL Wolfsburg[/a], who they trail on goal difference, having played a game more.[/p][p][b]Flashscore Man of the Match: [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/orban-willi/WQdSnUfq/"]Willi Orbán[/a] ([a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/rb-leipzig/KbS1suSm/"]RB Leipzig[/a])[/b][/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/rb-leipzig-KbS1suSm/st-pauli-ILyJuN3g/?mid=6RGA0r36"]Check out the match summary here.[/a][/b][/p]