Post match reaction
12.05.18
"It really hurts"
In spite of HSV’s 2-1 win against Borussia Mönchengladbach, the Rothosen have been relegated to the Bundesliga 2 for the first time in the club’s history. There was huge disappointment in the stadium after the final whistle as this result was not able to change the club’s fate. HSV.de has the players’ and coaches’ thoughts after the game.
Despite the 2-1 home win against Borussia Mönchengladbach on the final day of the season, HSV have been relegated to the Bundesliga 2 for the first time in the club’s history. Wolfsburg managed to beat 1. FC Köln at home to secure their place in the relegation play-off, while Hamburg’s fate for next season was determined. The Rothosen were clearly disappointed after the game as the players went round applauding the fans who remained behind in the Volksparkstadion. HSV.de collected the thoughts of the players and coaches after the game.
Gotoku Sakai: It really hurts. The fact we are relegated is really hard to accept. In the last few weeks we have given our all to achieve our goal. We tried to resist our fate today and really got our teeth into the game. I am proud of my teammates and our coaching staff. We have always kept up the belief and never gave up. Even today we had hoped that luck would be on our side and that maybe Köln would win in Wolfsburg. Christian Titz will carry on developing the team in the Bundesliga 2. The coach is really important for us and has been hugely influential in the last few weeks. We can’t turn back time now and so it is important that all of us look forward. Personally I would love playing for HSV in Bundesliga 2 and would even like to extend my contract.
Kyriakos Papadopoulos: We are all extremely disappointed and are all suffering. My heart goes out to the team, the fans and all of the people at the club. The work done by the coaches has been impressive and has been the main reason the team has done so well in the last few weeks and has been successful in the last few games. We have picked up 13 points in the last eight games and kept playing our football. Everyone has seen the steps forward we have taken. I am truly really sorry that we were unable to prevent our relegation in the end. We are all guilty of that. The support we have received from the majority of fans is not normal – I have never seen anything like it. We got relegated but got applauded! I am convinced that HSV will come quickly back up to the top division. As for my personal future, nothing can be ruled out at the minute. I love playing for this huge club and have a contract in place for the Bundesliga 2.
Frank Wettstein: I am rightfully proud of the team. They have once more shown that they are fit to play Bundesliga football. In this supposedly hopeless situation, the players not once gave up and continued to give everything during the game. The victory was well deserved. Now is not the right time to assess how things will progress going forward. In the near future we will sit down with all of the players and clarify the situation.
On the terrible scenes at the end of the game: The club firmly condemns the behaviour of these so-called fans. This kind of pyrotechnics occurs in other stadiums and is difficult to prevent completely. The police handled the situation incredibly well and reacted calmly. They quickly managed to control the situation. It was clear to see that it came from a small section of the crowd and that’s why you can’t put a blanket over all of the fans. The vast majority supported their team impeccably this afternoon and caused no trouble in the stands.
"I am proud of how much the team has been willing to put in during the last eight weeks. And that did not come from any single player but rather from a unity together with the fans."
Christian Titz: I think that my team deserved the win today. The team handled the situation very well. We started the match well and rightly got our opener. Then their counter led to the equalising goal. In the second half we came out firing and really put them under pressure, getting our second goal. With the red card, the game obviously got a bit harder but we didn’t give anything away. I pay my compliments to the spectators for the way in which they supported the team today. I am proud of how much the team has been willing to put in during the last eight weeks. It was about showing decorum and being graceful as we say goodbye. And that did not come from any single player but rather from a unity with the fans. That makes me proud because it is not normal for a club to go down and for people to continue getting on with one another and keep supporting the team. That was what I hoped for today.
Dieter Hecking: We knew that today would not be an easy task for us. Particularly in the opening phases, we were too passive. HSV started well, stopped us from playing and deserved to take the lead. We then got the equaliser with our first real good chance and settled better into the game with a change of system. Nevertheless it was not what we had hoped for, which is why we should quickly put a lid on the events. We deserved to lose today even though the three points didn’t do HSV any good. The best thing for me was how 56,500 fans showed how much fun football can be after the game. Even when this team gets relegated, the fans applauded them. We shouldn’t even pay any attention to the behaviour of certain others.