Polzin relieved after Groningen win, fed up with pointless friendlies | OneFootball

On Wednesday, HSV won a hastily arranged test match against FC Groningen. Coach Merlin Polzin gave a positive assessment afterward.

For him, the encounter with the sixth-placed team of the Dutch Eredivisie held more significance than a typical test match during the international break. Unlike the disappointing performances against Hannover or Osnabrück (both 1:3), Polzin did not impose specific tactical instructions. "Today, the focus was clearly on winning. We were fed up with crappy test matches. And I didn't want to take a day and a half to unwind because I was upset," emphasized the promotion coach (via Mopo).

His team, which was changed in almost all positions compared to the 1:1 against Dortmund, performed very convincingly, especially in the first half. Emir Sahiti, Immanuel Pherai – who hammered the ball under the crossbar – and Bakery Jatta, three players who recently had little to no playing time, scored to give a 3:0 lead at halftime. These players showed him "that they are there, that they are fit, and that I can count on them," praised Polzin.

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“Very Professional Performance” Pleases Polzin

In the second half, the coach, who for the first time appointed the in-form Nicolai Remberg as captain in the absence of many leading players, made several substitutions. His team showed some defensive lapses, which David van der Werff punished with two wonderful long-range goals. Nevertheless, the victory against a guest team that also made many substitutions was not in danger. HSV continued to play purposefully forward, scoring further goals through Sahiti, Ransford Königsdörffer, and Guilherme Ramos, and won comfortably 6:3.

"A very professional performance," said Polzin, who had to do without national players Yussuf Poulsen, Miro Muheim, Luka Vuskovic, and Giorgi Gocholeishvilli. "Totally stable, it was good to see, I am very satisfied," the 35-year-old explained. Today, Thursday, the next training session is on the schedule before the professionals can enjoy a long weekend.

Photo: IMAGO

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