Just days after confirming their 2. Bundesliga status, FC St. Pauli have begun their preparations for next season by extending the contract of six players.
Philipp Heerwagen and Bernd Nehrig, both of whom have been key figures this season, have signed new deals running to 2019 and 2018 respectively.
The quartet of Svend Bordersen, Maurice Litka, Yi-Young Park and Jan-Marc Schneider have also put pen to paper to remain at the club beyond the summer.
Important duo extend Millerntor stays
St. Pauli all but made sure of their survival with a 2-1 victory over 1.FC Kaiserslautern on Friday, which was then confirmed by other results later in the weekend. That has acted as the starting trigger to extend with players whose contracts had been set to expire in the summer.
Heerwagen has been one of the surprise successes of the club resurgence in the second half of the season, taking advantage of an injury to Robin Himmelmann and doing enough to surpass him as the club’s number one, despite having played just twice previously since joining permanently from VfL Bochum in 2013. He has kept clean sheets in exactly half of his 18 appearances this season.
By contrast, midfielder anchor Nehrig has clocked up more than 80 appearances over four seasons, missing just three matches in this campaign. The club have taken up the option in the 30-year-old’s contract to extend for another 12 months.
Director of sport Andreas Rettig praised both players when the deals were announced on Tuesday. He said that Heerwagen had been “exceptional” both on and off the pitch for the club, and that he “identifies totally with the club’s values.” He added that Nehrig had “demonstrated that he’s a leader who shows the way and assumes responsibility” during what had been a difficult season for the club.
Youngsters set to play more important role in first team
Litka, Park and Schneider have made just 12 first team appearances between them this season, whilst Bordersen is yet to make his senior debut, however Rettig believes they all “have the potential” to be key players in the future.
“The intention now is for them to take the next step and develop in the squad,” he added, also praising their “loyalty” and commitment, as they had all declared a desire to stay regardless of what league St. Pauli had been in next season.
Of the quarter, 21-year-old winger Litka has had the most involvement in the first team this season, with two starts and five substitute appearances. He remains until 2020, whilst German under-20 international goalkeeper Bordersen has extended until 2019.
Schneider is captain and top scorer of the club’s second team, with 13 strikes in the Regionalliga Nord this season, and along with Park he signs his first professional deal with St. Pauli, running for two years.
This week's business leaves just three first team players out of contract in the summer, as per Transfermarkt, most notably captain Sören Gonther and fellow defender Daniel Buballa. Fringe midfielder Dennis Rosin is the other player whose deal is set to expire.
Quotes via FC St. Pauli.