Aiming for a first win at the Millerntor | OneFootball

Bundesliga – we’re back! From the mild temperatures of our training camp in Portugal, it’s straight into the icy conditions at the Millerntor.

“We’re professional enough to deal with the weather. We want to make a statement right away and win the first game,” said Ridle Baku ahead of Saturday’s trip to FC St. Pauli (15:30 CET). At the same time, he acknowledged the challenge: “The atmosphere there is excellent. It won’t be easy for us.”

Here are five facts ahead of our first competitive game of 2026.

Key players available again

Ridle, Assan Ouédraogo, Antonio Nusa and Ezechiel Banzuzi all made their return during the training camp on the Algarve. Benny Henrichs has also rejoined full team training after a long spell out with a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Which of our players will actually feature on Saturday remains to be seen. One thing is certain, though: Ole Werner once again has more options at his disposal, with important players bringing fresh energy and quality back into the squad.

Our head coach will provide an update on the current squad situation at Friday’s pre-match press conference from 09:30 CET.

Time for two firsts

0-1, 0-1, 0-0 – so far, we’re still waiting for our first goal and our first win at the Millerntor. Since our promotion to the third division in 2013, we haven’t gone longer against any other club without scoring ourselves.

That’s set to change on Saturday! One stat that offers encouragement is that St. Pauli have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last 11 home matches (since March 2025).

Goals hard to come by, top goalscorer missing

St. Pauli have scored 13 Bundesliga goals this season, a joint league low together with Heidenheim and Mainz. RB Leipzig, by contrast, have found the net 30 times – the third-highest total in the league, alongside Frankfurt.

The Kiezkicker attempt the fewest shots per game in the division (10.5), while RBL rank second with 16.3 efforts per match. The xG values tell a similarly clear story: St. Pauli sit bottom of the league on 12.7 xG, while RB Leipzig are second-highest with 28.2.

Adding to their problems, centre-forward Andreas Hountondji – Hamburg’s most dangerous attacker with four goals – will miss the game due to a hairline fracture in his left ankle.

In form

The side coached by Alexander Blessin, who will take charge of his 50th Bundesliga match against the Red Bulls, finished the year in encouraging form. St. Pauli booked their place in the DFB-Pokal quarter-finals with a 2-1 win away at Borussia Mönchengladbach.

They have also produced solid performances in the league in recent weeks, drawing against 1. FC Köln (1-1) and Mainz 05 (0-0), plus winning 2-1 at home against 1. FC Heidenheim. Even so, with 12 points from 15 matches, the club are currently experiencing the second-worst Bundesliga season in their history – only 2001/02 was worse, with just seven points on the board at this stage.

Assist king closing in on milestone

Christoph Baumgartner has already registered six assists in the Bundesliga this season – only Bayern's Michael Olise (8) has more. The Austrian is also on the verge of a personal milestone, as he's set to make his 200th Bundesliga appearance. To date, he has recorded 40 goals and 18 assists in 199 top-flight matches.

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