Team

Squad update: Birthday boy Dompe back on the ball

HSV held their first training session back at the Volksparkstadion on Tuesday following their training camp, with plenty of positive news on the player front.

Glorious summer weather and the school holidays in full swing, the was a good crowd at the Volksparkstadion for the first team session in Hamburg after the Rothosen’s training camp. Many families, plenty of kids and a host of curious onlookers lined the training pitch, where there was plenty going on under the watchful eyes of board member for sport Stefan Kuntz and director of football Claus Costa. Head coach Merlin Polzin had a wealth of players at his disposal, among them Jean-Luc Dompe. The Frenchman not only celebrated his birthday on Tuesday, but also his return to ball work after a spell on the sidelines – and the enjoyment he took from his touches was clear for all to see.

Bakery Jatta was back doing ball work yesterday already, making extra use of Monday’s day off to continue edging closer to full team training. On Tuesday, while the rest of the squad spent long spells in an 11 v 11 game, Jatta worked individually with rehab coach Sebastian Capel. Capel also oversaw Yussuf Poulsen and Immanuel Pherai, who were both pushing hard on the training pitch as they work towards their comebacks.