Match reaction

“We showed a different side to our game in the second 45”

HSV’s defeat to FC Bayern can be ascribed in large part to their lacklustre first half performance. The Rothosen will build on their second half showing, as the players said in their post-match interviews. Read all the reaction to the game here.

Nikolai Remberg: We were completely asleep in the first half. The first goal stopped us in our tracks. Then, we conceded more silly goals. It’s still rubbish to be 4-0 down at the break and end up losing 5-0, but the takeaway from this game for me is that we stayed solid in the second half and came out of the dressing rooms with a better energy. We’ve got to build on the performance in the second half and put the rest of the game out of our minds.

Daniel Heuer Fernandes: The first half didn’t go how we wanted it to compared to what we showed against Gladbach, for example. We weren’t present in those moments and were exposed far too often. You get punished against opposition like this when you play like that. We were better in the second half. The team talk at half time was good tactically and filled us with energy. In the second half, you could then see that we were more aggressive, gave the opposition less room, that we put more pressure on the ball and managed to create a few chances. In the second half, you could see what it takes to bring about positive moments. If we manage to do that on the pitch, then we’ll be successful.

Luka Vuskovic: It wasn’t a great debut, since we lost 5-0. But we’ve got to build on the performance in the second half, take the positive passages of play away with us, and continue to improve. I found playing against Harry Kane hard. He’s one of the best strikers in the world. I’m not too happy with how it went, but it’s an important experience that I can take away with me.

“We lacked the aggression you need to show in challenges here”

Merlin Polzin: It was a deserved win at home. When you start the game like we did in the first ten minutes, it makes a task that already isn’t very easy even more difficult. We definitely felt the effects of that in the first half and I’m not happy with the part we had to play in it at times. We didn’t manage to close down important space well enough to further prevent the opposition from threatening. We also lacked the aggression you need to show in challenges here to break up the rhythm of the game. We clearly addressed that at the break. The boys were also very harsh on themselves. In the second 45, we showed a different side to our game. I was happier with that, since I saw a team playing for the reason we came here. We’ve got to build on that.