Polzin on working with Baumgart: "He was a point of reference" | OneFootball

On Sunday, HSV will face former coach Steffen Baumgart for the first time since he took over at Union Berlin at the start of the year. Merlin Polzin looked back on their time working together.

Their collaboration in Hamburg lasted only nine months. Steffen Baumgart, who was brought in as a beacon of hope, was unable to meet expectations and had to leave in November 2024. Merlin Polzin, however, does not blame his former superior for the lack of results (via kicker): “Our time working together wasn’t a success story in terms of points, but that wasn’t down to Steffen. It was also about the team, all of us, and me as well.”

He went on to say: “I was very critical of myself. Still, I was able to learn an incredible amount from Steffen.” During the week, Polzin was regularly absent due to his UEFA Pro License course, which he successfully completed in December of last year. “Steffen supported me to the maximum during this time, and that’s another reason why I’m very grateful for our time working together.”

Polzin looks forward to reunion with Baumgart

Baumgart was “a point of reference for me as a still very young coach.” Accordingly, the work of the HSV coach is likely to contain elements from his direct predecessor. After Baumgart’s departure, however, Polzin also made some key changes at HSV, such as returning to a back four and a renewed focus on possession-based play, which ultimately led to promotion.

Last weekend, HSV celebrated their first Bundesliga win since 12.05.2018 with a 2-1 victory over Heidenheim and head into the match against 1. FC Union Berlin with renewed confidence. Union, for their part, made a statement with a 4-3 win at Eintracht Frankfurt. Baumgart, however, was shown a red card shortly before the end after repeatedly voicing his displeasure at a controversial penalty decision, and will not be able to follow the match from his usual position.

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“I think it’s a shame that Steffen won’t be standing next to me on the touchline on Sunday. But even so, I’m looking forward to seeing him again. And I can speak for all of us in saying that,” said Polzin. When asked about Baumgart’s briefly raised middle finger, he said: “He didn’t mean any harm to anyone, he’s just fully in the game in moments like that. These emotions and these characters are exactly what everyone is always calling for.” Emotions will undoubtedly be running high at the atmospheric Alte Försterei, even with Baumgart suspended.

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