The fact that central defender Patric Pfeiffer oriented himself towards the top after the kick-off for SV Darmstadt 98is a well-known scheme in the game of lilies. For the long and high ball that follows, the 1.96 meter man should be a target player and confuse the opposing defense.

When the attack fizzles out, as is usually the case, Pfeiffer turns back to defence. However, he did not do that against FC St. Pauli and surprisingly continued to play as a striker for the first few minutes.

The task for the team was to implement the idea with Pfeiffer in attack in a controlled manner, explained coach Torsten Lieberknecht after the game . That also affected the time when the 23-year-old went back into defense and took over his actual part.

After five minutes the experiment was over

The experiment was over after about five minutes. Pfeiffer's excursion into the offensive remained without tangible gain for the team. The tactical trick of his coach did not do the player himself any good either, as some lack of concentration in his game showed.

After the game, Lieberknecht made it clear that the Pfeiffer experiment was not his “secret weapon”, which he had mentioned several times in the past week and a half . Even the fact that he took two goalkeepers with him to Hamburg in Alexander Brunst and Steve Kroll is no indication that he is planning a surprise coup with a keeper as a field player.

At SV Darmstadt 98 the players are scarce

The fact that there was still a place on the bench despite the two substitute keepers in the match day squad shows how thin the staffing level at Lilien is now. Some of Klaus Gjasula, Fabian Schnellhardt, Mathias Honsak, Magnus Warming and Aaron Seydel have been missing for a long time. Except for Seydel, none of them have a chance of returning this year.

Before the game, Keanan Bennetts, who had been signed just a week earlier, had to sit out due to an infected foot wound. Yassin Ben Balla only joined the team on Saturday after the suspicion of a corona infection had not been confirmed.

Jannik Muller, FC St. Pauli - SV Darmstadt 98

After a good performance against St. Pauli injured Jannik Müller

Concern about Jannik Müller

And after just over an hour, Jannik Müller, the Lilien's best defender up to that point, had to leave the field. The 28-year-old has been struggling with foot pain for weeks, it was no longer possible, he urgently needs a longer phase to regenerate, his coach explained.

Against this background, a secret weapon would do the lilies good. But the options and possible variations are becoming fewer and fewer. The only outfield player who was not used against St. Pauli was defender Thomas Isherwood.

After the Kiel game, after being asked about his coach's secret weapon , winger Matthias Bader said with a wink: "I think maybe he doesn't know it himself."