A short visit to Marcel Hartel at the training ground in Niendorf. The morning session is over, there is a little work in the weight room, then Hartel is free for the day – almost. The question and answer session with the 27-year-old midfielder is reminiscent of his appearances on the pitch: there is lightness and happiness, nothing heavy or complicated.
Ultimately, it’s as obvious as Hartel, who was born in Cologne, looking back on his career as a football player: “I was always the smallest, and my technical abilities always made me stand out more than the bigger ones. I always wanted to have the ball, wanted to create things and put my teammates in the spotlight. I took that with me into the professional field. I enjoy what we do.”
“I wanted the responsibility”
His club has that too. There have already been 14 games played in the second Bundesliga, and FC St. Pauli goes into the derby against Hamburger SV this Friday evening (6.30 p.m. in the FAZ live ticker for the 2nd Bundesliga and on Sky) as league leaders and favorites. First against second, strongest defense against second-best attack, battle of systems – there are many attributions for the eleventh duel between the two Hamburg clubs in the lower house.
FC St. Pauli won five of them and HSV won three. While coach Fabian Hürzeler has instilled defensive thinking and tough residual defense into FC’s forward possession football, Tim Walters HSV is trying an adapted style this season – long balls are now also allowed to free up or bridge the ball.
However, his team, which is weakened by substitutes, often shows its vulnerable side away, as was the case in the 2-4 defeat in Kiel three weeks ago, when a 0-2 deficit was first made up and then tactically naively given away. Jonas Meffert, as the only clearly defensive-minded midfielder, is often not enough to provide protection. The fact that HSV right winger Bakery Jatta is suspended from Millerntor is certainly a disadvantage, considering how much their game is tailored to him.
The fact that St. Pauli, on the other hand, not only plays successfully (undefeated!), but also well, has a lot to do with Marcel Hartel, this artist on the ball, who forms the creative, combative center with Jackson Irvine and leads the team: “I felt like it Discussions with our trainer Fabian Hürzeler made it clear that I would have more responsibility. I wanted that too. This year I feel the trust of the whole team and the coaching staff even more.”
In the summer, St. Pauli gave up some leading players. Hartel moved up. Nothing that bothers him much: “I’m fundamentally relaxed and open towards everyone. It wasn’t difficult for me to reach out to people more. There is also a certain amount of pressure, but I can deal with that. I’m thinking about how I can help the team. I don’t just keep my head to myself, I also look at what’s best for the team.”
“We have learned from the past”
He names two things that fall into his understanding of leadership. On the one hand, an intact cabin. On the other hand, staying in the moment. Hartel says: “If someone has the idea of looking too far into the future, I will intervene. I know how the league works. It doesn’t do anyone any good to look too far ahead. We’re so clear-headed that we just look from week to week.”
Hartel speaks from experience. In the 2021/22 season, his first at Millerntor, St. Pauli lost promotion in the final phase after a fantastic first half of the season. A season later, the first half was so weak that the team fell towards the relegation zone. Hartel identified the step towards more stability as the decisive factor in terms of success: “We have learned from the past – many things can end again quickly. We have developed well and experienced players have joined us. Now it could be that we go even further down our path. We want to have this dominance throughout the entire season.”
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The Hartel in this series is the best Hartel imaginable. Seven goals, six assists; a significant increase, a record that has a lot to do with coach Hürzeler. “We show attractive football that suits me personally,” says Hartel. For the small-scale, detailed game with a lot of ball possession and freedom from aggressive pressing, quick-thinking, ball-confident players like him are needed. It’s not easy: “It’s tiring on the head. Bringing this football onto the pitch requires mental strength.”
And it takes players who believe in the coach’s game idea – and not entirely unselfishly. Hartel says: “I have taken a big step forward. I wouldn’t have gotten to this point without the individual analyzes from the coaching team. “That’s an enrichment.” For him. And for FC St. Pauli, who definitely want to be promoted this time. But HSV finally wants that in its sixth year in the second division.
