Bundesliga
Goals from Adam Dźwigała and Andréas Hountondji earned St. Pauli a 2-0 victory against local rivals Hamburg, who had Giorgi Gocholeishvili sent off in the second half.
Hamburg 0-2 St. Pauli
Goals: 0-1 Dźwigała 19' (assist: Pereira Lage), 0-2 Hountondji 60' (assist: Fujita)
Red card: Gocholeishvili 77'
The Hamburg derby returned to the Bundesliga after a 14-year absence, with both sides looking to build on opening day draws. Hamburg, playing their first top-flight home game in seven years, drew 0-0 at Borussia Mönchengladbach on Matchday 1, while St. Pauli drew 3-3 with Borussia Dortmund.
Despite Hamburg enjoying the lion's share of possession in the early stages, it was the visitors who struck first in the 19th minute. A cleverly worked short corner saw Danel Sinani play the ball to Mathias Pereira Lage, who delivered a low cross into the box. Adam Dźwigała reacted quickest, firing a shot that Daniel Heuer Fernandes managed to get a hand to but couldn't keep out.
Hamburg struggled to create clear-cut opportunities despite their territorial advantage, with Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer's early header the closest they came to finding the back of the net in the first half. Indeed, they were fortunate not to fall further behind before the break as Pereira Lage dragged a shot narrowly wide after combining brilliantly with Andréas Hountondji and Sinani.
The hosts thought they had found an equaliser early in the second half when Königsdörffer raced on to a long ball and sent a composed finish past Nikola Vasilj, but their celebrations were cut short as VAR confirmed the striker had strayed marginally offside. Things went from bad to worse for Hamburg on the hour mark as Joel Chima Fujita played a magnificent through ball to release Hountondji, who rounded Heuer Fernandes before slotting home from a tight angle to make it 2-0.
Hamburg's misery was compounded in the 77th minute when Giorgi Gocholeishvili received a second yellow card for a foul on Pereira Lage, leaving the hosts with ten men for the remainder of the match.
St. Pauli controlled proceedings thereafter, with Heuer Fernandes making several good saves to prevent further damage, including a magnificent stop from James Sands' powerful volley. The visitors held on comfortably for a deserved victory - their first against Hamburg in the Bundesliga since 2011.
Hountondji was the standout performer at the Volksparkstadion, capping an excellent display with a well-taken goal that effectively sealed the victory for St. Pauli. The forward, who received 39 percent of the overall vote, combined intelligent movement with clinical finishing, reaching a top speed of 33.88 km/h as he troubled the Hamburg defence throughout the night.
Hountondji was at the heart of St. Pauli's most threatening attacks, starting the move that very nearly led to the visitors' second goal on the stroke of half-time. His substitution in the 69th minute came after he had already left his mark on this Matchday 2 derby.
Bundesliga Match Facts
xGoals: Hamburg 0.4 - St. Pauli 1.57
Fastest player: Warmed Omari (Hamburg), 34.11 km/h
Lowest goal probability: 0-1 by Adam Dźwigała (St. Pauli), 3.4 percent
Most pressed player: Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer (Hamburg), 18 times under pressure
Pass efficiency: Arkadiusz Pyrka (St. Pauli), +2.49
Fantasy Heroes: Jordan Torunarigha (Hamburg, 278 Points), Louis Oppie (St. Pauli, 252 Points), Adam Dźwigała (St. Pauli, 233 Points)