Ahead of the clash at St. Pauli: HSV’s derby expert has his say! | OneFootball

When HSV visits FC St. Pauli for the city derby on Friday evening, one person knows exactly what it takes – without ever having played there.

Nicolas Capaldo has already experienced some of the most heated derbies in the football world during his career. Many HSV fans were therefore particularly concerned last Saturday when Capaldo had to leave the match against Borussia Mönchengladbach (0:0) early.

However, the vice-captain reported himself fit in time. "Yes, I've already trained with the team again and I feel good," the Argentine explained in an interview with the Hamburger Abendblatt. "I felt something after a long sprint. Normally, I don't like to leave early, but considering the derby, it was a precautionary measure."

Capaldo was already aware of the special significance of city derbies before his transfer. "When I was in Salzburg, I met some St. Pauli fans who told me about the city derby," he said. And generally speaking, derbies are exceptional matches for him: "It's like a final in the middle of the season. For the fans, it's more than just three points."

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Capaldo confident: HSV will "perform differently than in the first leg"

Looking at the first leg against St. Pauli, which HSV ultimately lost 0:2 without a chance, Capaldo sees clear differences from the current situation. "We were a very newly assembled team," he recalled. "In the meantime, we've become a team, we play very intensively, and we will also perform differently against St. Pauli than in the first leg."

The 27-year-old knows exactly how to handle the enormous pressure of such games. After all, he has played multiple times in the Superclásico between Boca Juniors and River Plate. His guiding principle before such big duels is clear: "You have to be cool in the head and hot in the heart. It's the same in the derby." If HSV can display this mindset at Millerntor for 90 minutes, the chances for their first away win of the season are anything but bad.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.