St. Pauli midfielder Afeez Aremu says his side will now refocus after their DFB-Pokal quarter-final defeat to Union Berlin on Tuesday night.
The Neighborhood Kickers were defeated by Die Eisernen 2-1 at Stadion An der Alten Försterei, with Aremu up against compatriot Taiwo Awoniyi.
Despite the loss at the German capital, the Hamburg based side are still in contention for promotion to Bundeliga.
Speaking to the Media after the game, Aremu revealed that his side will switch their focus to their next game against Karlsruhe on Saturday afternoon.
“Today we can be angry but tomorrow we will refocus. We can’t afford to let this defeat break us down.
“We knew from the beginning that this would be a difficult challenge and it would be an open game. It could go either way, but I think we had the clearer chances and at the end of the day, this is also their luck.
“We should be proud of our performance and forge ahead with Karlsruhe coming up on Saturday.
Two defensive slip-ups handed Union Berlin a spot in the semifinals of the DFB-POKAL for the first time in 21 years with a 2-1 win over second-division St. Pauli on Tuesday.
St. Pauli took the lead in the 21st minute with a smart free-kick routine when Marcel Hartel laid the ball off for Daniel-Kofi Kyereh to hit a low shot past the wall and into the bottom-right corner. St. Pauli showed resilience in its biggest cup game for 16 years but couldn’t hold on as Union reached the semifinals for the first time since it was the cup runner-up in 2001.
Goalkeeper Dennis Smarsch lost his balance as he rushed out to face Taiwo Awoniyi one-on-one, and that hesitation meant he could only parry Awoniyi’s shot into the path of Union striker Sheraldo Becker, who scored into the empty net just before halftime.
A hopeful long pass brought Union the winner as St. Pauli defender Jakov Medic reached the ball first but slipped under pressure from substitute Andreas Voglsammer, who gratefully collected the loose ball and shot past Smarsch.