Season

Preparations underway ahead of Hamburg derby

Apart from midfielder Laszlo Benes, a full quota of Rothosen were out on the training pitch at the Volksparkstadion. The players spent around 90 minutes working on their fitness and tactics.

On Tuesday morning, the Rothosen kicked off their week of training ahead of the hotly anticipated 111th Hamburg derby (Friday evening, 18:30 CEST). Amid early summer weather and plenty of sunshine, head coach Steffen Baumgart’s side began training at 11:00 CEST, and everyone was present apart from Laszlo Benes. The midfielder completed an individual session with the help of rehab coach Sebastian Capel. Right-back Ignace Van der Brempt, who along with Benes suffered a knock last time out in Braunschweig, switched to individual training during the session.

Laszlo Benes training individually with the ball.

During the session, the Rothosen practised various different tactical approaches, and used various different pitch sizes. Head coach Steffen Baumgart and his assistants Rene Wagner, Merlin Polzin and Loic Fave repeatedly used the breaks during eleven-a-side games to discuss things with both teams. Centre-back Sebastian Schonlau and midfielder Ludovit Reis also stood out with their vocal but positive speeches. The message was clear to everyone: the preparations for the Hamburg derby, which will continue with training sessions at 11:00 CEST on both of the next two days, should be done with full concentration.

After the 4-0 away win over Eintracht Braunschweig, the Rothosen have momentum ahead of facing their near neighbours. “There’s nothing better than going into the derby with a win like that under our belt,” said captain Schonlau after the game at the weekend. “Everyone at the club is fired-up and pushing us forward. We want to play for the badge and show on Friday what HSV means to us.” Reis agrees, and emphasised that “in a derby, you always need to put in the best possible performance. The team are fired up for the match. It's up to us to go and win the game.”