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14.09.2026
With Vuskovic Comeback: HSV Kick off Cologne Week
Reflect, stick together, move forward: Ahead of Saturday’s home game against Cologne, the Rothosen begin an important week of training. On Tuesday, Mario Vuskovic’s return to team training will be a particularly special moment. For organisational reasons, the open training session will take place in the Volksparkstadion.
Hamburger SV were handed another heavy defeat on Sunday (13 September), going down 5-0 for the second consecutive match. Following the 5-0 defeat to Mainz, the Rothosen also suffered a 5-0 loss away to Champions League participants RB Leipzig. “It’s a statement,” sporting director Claus Costa admitted after the match, while also offering a matter-of-fact assessment: “It sounds absurd when you lose 5-0 twice in a row, but in terms of the way the game unfolded and our approach, today was a different match.”
Indeed, unlike against Mainz, HSV had been on a relatively even footing for large parts of the game and had clearly improved. However, the Rothosen lost their way not only in the first half, when Leipzig took full advantage of their two big chances, but also after the break, when last season’s third-placed side struck three times in a matter of minutes. “In the crucial moments, it has been far too easy for teams to score against us,” Costa explained, attributing this not only to individual errors but overall to issues in terms of group and team tactics.
“We have to get back to the basics and our principles in order to restore defensive stability,” said the former professional, who has full confidence in the coaching staff: “I see the coaching staff as very focused, analytical and rational. They know exactly what they are doing, and that will be the focus again next week. Over the past year and a half, this set-up has not stood for knee-jerk reactions, short-termism or token measures. Nobody should think that we are going to do anything extraordinary this week. Things will be addressed clearly and without sugar-coating, because we have to take steps forward. Above all, a lot of precise work will help.”
Head coach Merlin Polzin struck a similar tone in his analysis at the press conference following the match: “It’s important that we highlight the way in which we want to analyse the game. You can look at the final score and say that it was just as awful as last week. On the other hand, I saw a team today that tried from the very start of the match to do things significantly better than the week before.”
The Hamburg-born coach, who has repeatedly found the right answers alongside his coaching staff in challenging situations during his year and a half in charge, emphasised: “Paying close attention to our game is the only thing that will help our process. You only get out of phases like this by sticking together and taking responsibility, rather than trying to look for someone else to blame.”
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After four years: Vuskovic returns
Sticking together – that is something HSV have demonstrated particularly strongly in recent years. And that togetherness will be at the heart of proceedings twice over tomorrow, Tuesday, as the team begins its training week ahead of Saturday’s home game against 1. FC Köln.
Following his four-year doping ban, part one of long-awaited fan favourite Mario Vuskovic’s comeback is set to take place: the centre-back will be allowed to participate in team training for the first time. The club is expecting increased interest from supporters as a result. For organisational reasons, the open training session has been moved to the Volksparkstadion (3pm). The Nordtribüne will be open to fans, with entry starting at 2.30pm. Parking lots Weiß (White) and Rot (Red) will be open to the public.
“We are trying to give Mario a moment of appreciation on Tuesday,” Polzin explained last week, referring to the return to training of the 24-year-old Croatian, who will be eligible to play again from 15 November – in both competitive and friendly matches.
At the same time, it’s also about not putting too much focus on this matter – because that’s not Mario’s personality either. He is simply incredibly excited to be back in the dressing room and to have fun on and off the pitch with the team again."
Vuskovic will have his own locker in the dressing room in the same place where his brother Luka, who is five years younger, had his last season. Luka impressed both fans and club during the 2025/26 Bundesliga season while on loan with the Rothosen and said goodbye with the words that another Vuskovic would return the following season.
It is a return that not only HSV fans and his team-mates are eagerly anticipating, but also the Vuskovic family itself, whose closest members will be attending the open training session on Tuesday.
“From a mental perspective, what he and the entire Vuskovic family have experienced is something you would not wish upon anyone and would never want to experience yourself. It says a lot about the HSV family how everyone has stuck together over the past few years. That was outstanding,” Polzin emphasised.
Within the squad, he sees it as his responsibility to help those players who have not yet played alongside Mario understand the full significance of what has happened. It could provide another building block for generating fresh energy between the matches in Leipzig and Cologne, alongside the detailed footballing work required.
And Vuskovic himself? After four long years, he is about to experience a surreal moment.
“He is making a good impression and can hardly wait. He’ll be raring to go – we will probably have to keep him calm quite a bit,” Polzin said.
And that, too, is something they will manage together – NUR DER HSV!
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