Baumgart: "We will need to remain focused and direct"

Hamburger SV will travel to face SV Elversberg on Saturday evening (26th October), the same place where head coach Steffen Baumgart made his touchline debut for the side nearly eight months ago (1-0 win). During today's pre-match press conference, he spoke about what's changed since then, which players are symbolic of the change the team has underdone under his charge and what he expects from the upcoming opponent. Here's what the 52-year-old had to say about… 

…the squad: Silvan Hefti and Dennis Hadzikadunic won't be involved. We will need to see whether they will be ready in time for our cup game next week. Other than that, everyone else is available and there's no reason to change anything about our starting line-up based on our recent performances, as long as everyone remains fit. Lucas Perrin will get the chance to make his first start. The only consideration is whether he will play in the middle or on the right wing. 

…the upcoming opponent: We should always have respect for what other teams have achieved. If you take a look at the development that Elversberg have undergone over the past years, they spent several years in the top of the table in the Regionalliga, before earning successive promotions to reach the second division. Now, they're trying to improve their infrastructure and bring it to the level it needs to be at in the second division. I was at SVE's home game against Ulm. You can see that the club are going through a rebuild and that they look forward to every game. Just like us, Elversberg have also taken seven points from their last three games. They are amongst the hardest running teams in the division, create a lot of chances for themselves and have a solid defence. They are a strong second-division side, who can and will be able to climb the table with a series of strong results. 

"He leaves his heart and soul out there on the pitch, which is exactly what I want to see from my players."

…HSV's approach: We will do everything to ensure that we are fully focused on the day. However, a good performance in this league can lead to both positive and negative results. We obviously want a positive result in Elversberg. We will need to remain focused and direct in our approach and deliver a similar performance to our last two matches. 

...Ransford Königsdörffer's development: He's a bit symbolic of the development we've undergone over the last eight months, so since I arrived at HSV. There have been ups and downs in addition to continuous development. That's what I see within the team as well. We have improved in several areas, but also still have a long way to go. Regarding 'Ransi,' all I did was place my trust in him. The way I do that is by preferring to talk about what the lads are capable of. I've heard far too often what we can't do. As a player, that used to motivate me back in the day, but I don't know whether that approach works nowadays. It's about demanding things from the lads that they're capable of delivering. Ransi was paying attention and has done everything he can. As such, I don't really care whether the ball then occasionally bounces away from him or if his first touch doesn't go well. He leaves his heart and soul out there on the pitch, which is exactly what I want to see from my players.