Borussia Mönchengladbach turned things around with a stellar second half performance to book their place in the DFB-Pokal second round, beating St. Pauli 1-4 in the end.

After a very positive start to the season, St. Pauli were keen to bring that form into the cup competition. They made two changes from the weekend win at Karlsruher SC with Philipp Zereis and Kyoung-rok Choi coming in for Lasse Sobiech and Marcel Halstenberg, respectively.

Lucien Favre opted for an interesting centre-half pairing, as he handed Marvin Schulz and Andreas Christensen their debuts at the heart of defence. Lars Stindl and Josip Drmic also got their first competitive outing, in what was a very young Gladbach side.

The hosts started well and the busy Choi forced Yann Sommer into an early save. It was easy pickings for the Swiss stopper, however, who confidently grabbed his driven cross. Robin Himmelmann was soon in the firing-line at the other end, making a strong stop from Fabian Johnson's powerful shot.

The northerners continued to press forward and Choi was at the heart of the attack once again. He burst down the left and tried to find Lennart Thy, only to see his ball in narrowly miss the striker's foot and the far post. The Foals were finding it tough to break down the staunch home defence; testamenet to the work done by the team, and Ewald Lienen, during the summer.

Shock lead for St. Pauli

With their new-look side came Marc Rzatkowski's move back to the number eight role, and it's fair to say his runs from deep were paying off. Waldemar Sobota picked him out on the edge of the box and Rzatkowski strode onto the ball before curling an effort past the helpless Sommer. The ball rocketed into the top corner, giving the hosts a deserved advantage.

Some more snappy passing saw Enis Alushi float the ball out towards Daniel Buballa, and the left-back drove towards the box and beat both Tony Jantschke and Ibrahima Traore but could only fire into the side netting. Bernd Nehrig then had an attempt of his own, though his shot deflected kindly into the arms of Sommer. Gladbach attempted to mount a late fight-back but it was to no avail, bringing an end to the exciting first-half.

Gladbach turn it around after half-time

Favre's side came out of the traps quickest in the second period and nearly found an equaliser. Raffael played through Drmic but his pass was cut out by Himmelmann, who was off his line with a fantastic turn of pace. The Swiss striker then turned provider moments later and found Stindl, who thrashed well-wide.

The former Hannover captain wouldn't be stopped for long, however. Traore drilled a ball into his feet and his first touch was perfect to set himself up for the volley. That he did and the ball flew into the top corner with the aid of a deflection, catching Himmelmann cold and restoring parity in the game.

Just two minutes later the comeback was complete. The visitors had turned up a gear and both Stindl and Traore combined to score their second. This time roles were reversed as the Guinea international played a one-two with Stindl before curling a brilliant shot into the far corner, beyond Himmelmann's out-stretched hand.

Stindl grabs his second

The Foals weren't finished there and were keen to take advantage of the now shaky St. Pauli defence. They did just that when Stindl thundered home a third; it was unfortunate for the St. Pauli 'keeper, Himmelmann, who did well to deny Raffael initially. The rebound fell kindly for Gladbach's new midfield maestro, giving no-one a chance to block of stop his drive.

Despite conceding three goals in 13 minutes, the hosts wouldn't give in and went close just moments after Stindl's strike. Rzatkowski and Nehrig both forced good saves from Sommer, with the former's volley bringing the best out of the Bundesliga's elite stopper. John Verhoek sent a similarly good chance inches wide, too, as the hosts showed that they were no pushovers.

There was to be one more goal for Gladbach, and it was a fantastic finish. Thorgan Hazard, who had come on as a late substitute, rifled the ball into the top corner with just a few seconds left - a quite fantastic strike. That was it for St. Pauli, but they can hold their heads high after a fine performance. The visitors have given themselves the best possible confidence boost going into their crucial clash with Borussia Dortmund at the weekend.

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About the author
Jonathan Walsh
SoccerSight IFA commentator. VAVEL deputy editor-in-chief/VAVEL Bundesliga editor-in-chief and writer. Email: [email protected]