HSV coach Merlin Polzin is close to extending his contract, but Hamburg’s immediate concern is Saturday’s home match against Cologne after three defeats and a 0:12 goal difference.
Key takeaways
- Polzin has reached a basic agreement with HSV, with signatures and an official announcement still pending.
- Assistant Loic Favé will remain despite interest from Hannover 96.
- Centre-back Sebastiaan Bornauw will miss the Cologne match with a muscular problem.
- HSV will not sign an unattached defender despite their unstable back three.
- Mario Vuskovic becomes eligible again for the Bremen derby on 22 November, matchday 10.
Defensive work before Cologne
Polzin, 35, said the agreement over his own future and that of his staff is secure. He expects the club to confirm it soon. The deal has not yet been signed, but he described the trust between both sides as very strong.
He also stressed Favé’s value to his coaching staff. The assistant had been approached by Hannover, but will stay in Hamburg. Polzin called Favé’s work outstanding and said he is hugely important to him.
The league start has been damaging. HSV have taken no points from three fixtures and conceded 12 goals. Bornauw, the Belgian defensive leader, cannot return in time to face his former club Cologne. Polzin said the defender is progressing, but will not be ready this weekend.
Hamburg must improve collectively. Polzin accepted that the arrival of wing-backs Zakaria El Ouahdi and David Möller Wolfe has altered the team’s shape. There have been phases in which the structure was wrong, he said, and the new setup has not yet fully clicked.
Still, he does not see the two 5-0 losses, against Mainz and at RB Leipzig, as identical performances. Mainz was disastrous, in his view. The Leipzig analysis, however, supported his initial assessment from the touchline: HSV had several very good spells and should not dismiss the whole display.
Faith in the current defenders
Polzin has ruled out bringing in a free-agent centre-back. He accepts that the three-man defence has not yet found stability, but says he has complete faith in the existing group.
Against Cologne, he is expected to favour the recovered Warmed Omari ahead of youngster Shafiq Nandja.
Vuskovic will offer another option from late November. The defender’s playing ban ends in time for the derby at Werder Bremen on 22 November. It will be his first eligibility since a suspension of almost four years.
Polzin will not predict how quickly Vuskovic can help on the pitch. He said match sharpness is naturally missing, but described the returning defender as extremely fit and physically sharp. His influence in the dressing room has already stood out: demanding, energetic and with a strong personality.
Vuskovic is not being presented as a cure for HSV’s problems. Polzin recognises the length of his absence. But he believes the defender’s presence already gives the squad something extra.
