HSV secure services of Horst Hrubesch as academy director

Hamburger SV continues to lay the focus of the club on development for the future. The processes in the developments of talented youngsters at HSV will know be driven on by one of the most experienced coaches in the game, namely Horst Hrubesch, who takes over the role of academy director at HSV. Head of Sport Jonas Boldt was able to convince the 69-year-old, who was most recently from 2000 to 2016 in various roles with the German youth national set-up, to take over the reins at HSV. Hrubesch, who became European champion in 2008 with the German under-19 team and a year later with the under-21 team whilst also winning a silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, should positively influence the Rothosen’s youth work and develop it further in a director role.
 
“In the past few years I have been in contact with Horst Hrubesch every now and again and talked to him about football and the development potential of players. He has a huge amount of experience, knows how to reach youth players and on top of it all is a HSV man through and through. I thought it would be negligent to not talk about working with academy players,” said Jonas Boldt to the addition of Hrubesch to the academy. Hrubesch, who was one of the key players in the most successful period in the club’s history from 1978 to 1983, scored 96 goals in 159 games, and was keen to accept Boldt’s offer. “During the discussions I got the impression that HSV is now on the right path. In football it’s not about talking in an intelligent manner, it’s about hard work, patience and commitment. Only with those three things can we develop,” added Hrubesch, whose last job was the interim manager for the German women’s national team from March to November 2018. 

HSV’s goalscoring talisman from the past, known to the fans as the ‘beast in the air’, wants to start as HSV looks to place more emphasis on development and progress on the intricacies on the pitch this season. “We’re very happy that Horst wants to support our idea and our work,” Boldt explained. “Here we have to talk more about football and work more on our game,” said Hrubesch, who in the past few years had regular contact to HSV, without working for the club in an official capacity. The 69-year-old will receive an office in the Alexander-Otto-Akademie. “I will be available as long as this team works hard and with a goal in mind, and I enjoy myself,“ he added. The new academy director doesn’t want to set any targets for how many players are taken into the first team or positions in the league for youth teams. “Youth work is always about being patient. My only requirement and expectation that everyone involved maximise the strengths that they have. If we do that, then we will definitely improve step-by-step,” concluded Hrubesch.