Pre Match Report

Pleased with the result, realistic about the future

HSV were still overjoyed with the win over Freiburg the day after the match, having now reduced the gap to safety to just five points. Coach Chrisitan Titz however remains realistic about what the rest of the season might hold.

The 1-0 win against Freiburg in front of a 54,847 strong crowd in the Volksparkstadion was an important step for Hamburg SV. The win keeps hopes of achieving the impossible alive. Realism however, must prevail as despite the upturn in form and some good recent results, HSV remain in the relegation places with the gap to safety at five points. “The light at the end of the tunnel just got that little bit brighter because we have managed to decrease the deficit to five points. We now have a huge six-pointer against VfL Wolfsburg. We must remain realistic and will work hard until the very end,” explained HSV coach Titz. The team will be looking to remain grounded throughout these decisive final weeks.

HSV.de takes a look back at the game against Freiburg, with the latest team news and also looks forward to next week’s fixture against Wolfsburg.

On the game: The game in the Volksparkstadion turned out to be a tight-run encounter but crucially for the Rothosen it had a happy ending. After a good start for Hamburg, the guests came back into the game and would have gone into the lead if it Julian Pollersbeck had not made a couple of outstanding saves. Then, after the break Hamburg came out much better and took the game by the horns. Lewis Holtby gave HSV the opener and nearly got his second shortly after. Freiburg’s chances were severely dashed when Caglar Sönyüncu was shown red, reducing them to ten men. HSV subsequently upped the tempo and went close to doubling their lead after a numerous good chances. The Rothosen managed to see the game out with the numerical advantage and coach Titz seemed relieved to secure the three points, “It was clear that both sides had a lot riding on this game, which made it interesting right up to the end. Freiburg could have scored at any time, so I have to commend my team for seeing the game out. We were exhausted. It’s not easy to keep fighting like this week in week out.”
HSV celebrated their second win under Titz against Freiburg and therefore remain in the hunt for safety. The coach however, did not want to overstate this victory even though certain other results went HSV’s way this weekend, “I think that too much elation can also be dangerous. This lift is great for the fans but we can’t let ourselves get carried away. These wins build up our self-confidence but now we need to stay focused and be hungry for our next game.”

On team news: Dennis Diekmeier came into the XI for the suspended Douglas Santos, taking up the right-back position with captain Gotoku Sakai on the left side of a back four. Kyriakos Papadopoulos replaced Rick van Drongelen in the heart of the Hamburg defence, accompanied there by Diekmeier. Kyriakos proved to be a threat on several occasions going forward but whether the Greek-player will continue in the starting XI is yet to be seen. “I don’t was to speculate on it. We always decide who plays based on that week’s training. Everyone has their chance to work their way into this team but it is no secret that Douglas is a good player who always gives this team something,” explained Titz. Aaron Hunt is still struggling with muscular problems, and will likely miss the start of the new training week which begins on Tuesday.
There is also news on Joshua Vagnoman; the wing-back who would have made his starting XI debut against Freiburg. “With Joshua we will have to wait and see how his injury heals after the swelling goes down. Unfortunately that won’t happen overnight so we expect him to be out for around two weeks,” explained Titz.

Looking forward: HSV have a mammoth fixture next weekend against VfL Wolfsburg. A win would mean that the gap between the two sides is cut to just two points. “On Sunday evening, we will meet a side who is having a similarly miserable season but who have a lot of quality in their ranks. When they play to the best of their ability they really make games difficult for their opponent. The deciding factor will be who plays better on the day and shows the quality they have. If we can keep our nerve I hope it will be us but no doubt it will be a hard-fought game,” said Titz. HSV will therefore have to prepare well for their opponents, starting with a double training session on Tuesday.