"Not always spot on": Did Polzin get his tactics wrong with Vieira? | OneFootball

After the defeat against Augsburg, Merlin Polzin faced accusations from some supporters. Did he choose the wrong lineup in the Fuggerstadt?

The 0:1 loss at FC Augsburg sparked a lot of discussion in Hamburg. The main question is: Did Merlin Polzin make a coaching error by once again deciding to start Fábio Vieira on the right wing? The coach placed the Portuguese player in this position twice, and both times the expected effect did not materialize.

Polzin was eager to bring the creative midfielder back into the starting lineup after his suspension, without disrupting the recently well-functioning center with Nicolai Remberg and Sambi Lokonga. The solution: He deployed Vieira on the right offensive wing. Vieira was supposed to act as a free spirit there, but this plan failed. The 25-year-old had only 31 touches and could hardly influence the game.

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HSV: Polzin wants to "learn" from mistakes

Even during the 0:5 in Munich, this experiment yielded few positive results, though that was against a dominant Bayern team. In Augsburg, Polzin expected more and received one of HSV's weakest halves of the season as a response. "In the end, we coaches also have to learn from this," admitted the coach during training at Volkspark.

It is quite possible that Polzin will revert to previous tactics against VfB Stuttgart. Rayan Philippe, who was substituted in for the disappointing Vieira in Augsburg and remains HSV's top scorer with three season goals, is likely to have a good chance of starting. It remains unclear whether Polzin would restructure the midfield again for this, or if Vieira will lose his starting spot entirely.

The 35-year-old made it clear afterward that no personnel decision is set in stone for the Rothosen. "In working with the team, we don't say: Everything is always right," said Polzin.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.