“Keep walking the same way”
HSV coach Tim Walter will not change his game system anymore – determination on the pitch is decisive
Quelle: Getty Images
The second division team HSV recently suffered setbacks in the promotion race. Coach Walter also sticks to his game idea before the game against pursuers Paderborn. Despite criticism.
TDespite the many goals conceded and moderate point yield in the final spurt of the season: Hamburger SV wants to stay true to its line. Before the game against the strong attacking pursuer SC Paderborn in the 2nd Bundesliga, the somewhat irritated coach Tim Walter defied criticism at the press conference – and did not think of a fundamental change in the courageous style of play.
“We get to create chances, we get to defend consistently in many situations, but we want to do it in all situations,” said the 47-year-old two days before the third-placed team’s game at the Volksparkstadion on Friday evening (6:30 p.m./ skies). “And that’s why we’re convinced of ourselves and will continue along the same path,” added the 47-year-old self-confidently. After that, the coach basically became: “We think about the positive. Not, as is perhaps the norm in Germany, to think about the negative first.”
However, the latest results do not speak a really positive language from the point of view of the promotion candidate. Last week, the Rothosen lost 3-2 at newly promoted Magdeburg. Especially in the second half of the season, HSV is vulnerable on the defensive: the defense around captain Sebastian Schonlau conceded eight goals in the last three games alone. With four games to go, HSV is four points behind second-placed 1. FC Heidenheim. The tedious relegation threatens again to fulfill the dream of returning to the Bundesliga.
Even if Walter wants to stay true to his idea of a courageous offensive style, before the difficult duel against Paderborn he called for more determination in the final phase of the promotion race, “that each individual work even more intensively on his duel behavior”.
Paderborn has one goal more than HSV in the overall balance. Against the direct pursuer in fourth place in the table, it’s “about us determining the game and forcing our game on the opponent,” said Walter. “We will do everything we can to keep the points here.”
The Paderborn lurk for their chance
East Westphalia are currently six points behind Hamburg. For HSV, a defeat would bring an unpleasant situation – and the SCP would come close to the Hanseatic League.
In Paderborn, everyone is aware of this explosive scenario. The club from East Westphalia wants to stir up the promotion race again in the final sprint of the league. “The minimal residual hope is still there. Anyone can read the table: If you’re fourth, third place isn’t far away,” said Paderborn’s coach Lukas Kwasniok before the games at HSV and against second-placed Heidenheim.
“The nice thing is that we can make the league exciting. And nobody else. We know that. And that’s why it’s our claim and our duty to the league to deliver an absolutely top performance,” added Kwasniok.
