“The lads have trained well and are raring to go”

The winter break is over. On Saturday, the Rothosen are back in Bundesliga action with an away game at SC Freiburg (15:30 CET). The fixture marks HSV’s first competitive outing of 2026 as part of matchday 16. Despite challenging conditions, the team have spent the past few days preparing for the rest of the 2025/26 season in snowy Hamburg with real enthusiasm and intensity. That mindset was clear when HSV head coach Merlin Polzin addressed the media on Thursday afternoon, where he spoke in detail about the following topics…

…the squad: Warmed Omari has taken further steps in his recovery and has been able to complete parts of training with the team. However, he will not yet be an option for the weekend, nor will Robert Glatzel or Yussuf Poulsen. The same applies to Aboubaka Soumahoro, who is recovering from minor knee issues and was able to train outside again today. Rayan Philippe, Fabio Balde and Anssi Suhonen are also unavailable due to illness.

…new signing Damion Downs: He’s made a very lively first impression. Over his first two training sessions, he’s confirmed what we already sensed in our conversations. There’s a really good energy and connection between him, the coaching staff and the club. In training, he’s shown exactly what we’re hoping to get from him: runs in behind, pace and a presence in the box. Those are qualities we want to develop further. He’ll be part of the squad and is full of energy and excitement for the game in Freiburg.

…the game in Freiburg: We’re facing a team who only just missed out on the Champions League last season and who are still competing on three fronts this year. Freiburg always manage to get the absolute maximum out of their resources – that’s part of their DNA. It will be a game where we need to give everything we’ve got. They’re a well-organised side, dangerous from set pieces and in open play, and they have a number of players who have been delivering top Bundesliga performances consistently for years. Grifo, Günter or Ginter – for me, these are players who represent Bundesliga football at its purest.

"Huge credit to our grounds team, who’ve been working tirelessly to give us the best possible conditions."

…training in difficult weather conditions: It’s not often we get this much snow in Hamburg all at once. Huge credit to our grounds team, who’ve been working tirelessly to give us the best possible conditions. I’d also like to say a big thank you as well to everyone across the city who’s helping ensure people can get around safely. Beyond that, we simply accept the conditions for what they are. The weather is out of our control. It doesn’t really matter whether it’s cold or warm – the lads have trained well and they’re raring to go. On Saturday, it’s about bringing our football onto the pitch.

…targets for 2026: We’ve set ourselves clear objectives in both attack and defence, and we’re pursuing them with real ambition. It’s less about specific results and more about our footballing principles. The tasks have been clearly communicated to the squad. The players were very focused, contributed well and engaged fully. That’s how we want to start the year. Without going into too much detail, we want to attack space more often and become less predictable in the final third. Defensively, we’ve made good progress in structured phases of the game. The next step is reacting even quicker in unstructured moments after losing possession and getting back into our defined shapes and positions faster.