‘Someone with courage’ – Matthäus also impressed by Lemke | OneFootball

Louis Lemke made his Bundesliga debut away at Borussia Dortmund and also left an impression on prominent observers.

As soon as the match kicked off, the left-footer made history once again. At 16 years, 10 months and 21 days, he became the youngest player ever to make his first Bundesliga start in HSV’s starting XI. Despite the imposing backdrop of 81,365 spectators, Lemke showed no signs of nerves and delivered a respectable performance against a strong BVB side that was clearly superior in the first half.

Sky pundit Lothar Matthäus summed it up (via Mopo): “With the way the team performed in the first half, of course he suffered from that too. Like everyone else at HSV, he didn’t deliver his best performance. In the second half, not only did the attacking play improve, but so did the work against the ball. He played better and kept bravely pushing forward.”

Photo: IMAGO

Lemke: Polzin avoids lavish praise

Lemke had already repeatedly looked to get forward in the pre-season matches as well as in the DFB-Pokal win in Verl (3-0), where he even scored the third goal. “He’s not someone who just waited at the back, he’s someone who has courage. That gets rewarded, which is why he was allowed to play for so long,” Matthäus explained. The rookie was only taken off in the 89th minute for Rayan Philippe.

A sign that coach Merlin Polzin was also pleased with the display. Even so, he struck a more restrained tone than Matthäus: “He gained experience and he realized what it means to play in the Bundesliga. He was full of energy and, despite being extremely nervous, gave it everything he had. That’s something to build on.”

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Polzin concluded from his assessment that Lemke, who is learning very quickly, has “definitely improved.” Captain Nicolai Remberg — who also serves as the winger’s mentor — added: “He will definitely grow from games like this, playing here in Dortmund at 16. I played my first match in the 2. Bundesliga for Kiel at 23. When you compare that, it’s enormous.”

In a very short time, his protégé made sure that the absence of Miro Muheim, who had been virtually without competition for several years, did not negatively affect Hamburg’s play. The Swiss player was still not part of the squad in Dortmund either. At the moment, there is therefore a lot to suggest that Lemke will also start in the first home game against Mainz 05.

Photo: IMAGO

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