The St. Gallen Arena has always been known for its good atmosphere. On Saturday evening in the duel against FC Sion she was even better than usual. The whole stadium was bathed in the club colors, every fan received a green or white cap. The Espen fans used leaflets to inform the audience in which minute which choreo and song would be performed.
For a long time, the game on the pitch couldn’t keep up with the mood in the stands. It was clear that both teams were not blessed with a lot of self-confidence at the moment. With this 1:1 in the second direct duel within 6 days (the first comparison was 2:2 in Sion), St. Gallen has now been without a win in 6 league games (0/4/2), the Valaisians have even had 9 games a complete success (0/5/4).
Akolo turns the stadium into a madhouse
It took until the 54th minute before the first goal was scored. To the delight of most of the 17,160 fans, it was the home team that struck. After a fluid combination, Captain Lukas Görtler found Chadrac Akolo in the center, who only had to hold his foot from point-blank range. Nevertheless, the striker needed a bit of luck because he hit the ball poorly. The opening goal finally turned the stadium into a madhouse.
The goalscorer could actually only be called Akolo, because the 29-year-old Congolese was St. Gallen’s sole attacker in the first half. But Akolo was unlucky with both his shots on goal (20th/37th) and his header (32nd).
Unlucky Stevanovic with the lightning handball
Sion was unimpressed by the deficit and found his way into the game better. In the 68th minute, FCSG coach Enrico Maassen made a triple substitution. Among other things, he brought Mihailo Stevanovic. Only 16 seconds had been played after the restart when Stevanovic made a handball in the penalty area. Ali Kabacalman converted the penalty to make it 1-1 (69th). As a result, Sion had a little more of the game, but the guests were no longer able to succeed until the final whistle.
Before the break, it was Dejan Djokic who had Sion’s only significant chance. But his finish was tough: the FCSG goalie needed all of his 188 centimeters of height to steer the ball around the post with his fingertips.
This is how it continues
St. Gallen, sixth in the table, will play against the Northern Irish representative Larne next Thursday as part of the Conference League. 3 days later we play against GC in Letzigrund. Sion, ninth in the table, welcomes FC Luzern on the same day.
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