FEATURE | 1. FC Köln and Hamburg: How have the Bundesliga returnees fared? | OneFootball

With just under a third of the Bundesliga season in the books, now can be considered a good time to sit back and take stock of the fortunes of the Bundesliga’s two newest members: 1. FC Köln and Hamburg. 

‘Newest’ in the sense of league status in 2025, but as two of the Bundesliga’s founding clubs, both return to Germany’s top flight with a sense of entitlement and a genuine determination to remain—where they believe they belong. Köln arrived back as Zweite Liga champions after just one season away, meanwhile Hamburg are finally back after seven painful years in Germany’s second tier.

Busy transfer window for Bundesliga returnees

Following promotion, both clubs took similar approaches to the summer transfer window, with both clubs bringing in 11 new signings. Köln also let go of the same number of players, while Hamburg released nine. Notable departures for the Billy Goats included Damion Downs and Max Finkgräfe, while HSV parted ways with 2. Bundesliga top scorer Davie Selke and Ludovit Reis.

Köln kicked off the season with an impressive 1-0 victory over last season’s sixth placed finishers Mainz. With the busy window in the books, just three players who started the Billy Goats title winning match against Kaiserslautern in May also started at the MEWA Arena. Lukas Kwasniok’s side then backed up their opening day victory with a statement 4-1 dismantling of Freiburg. An ideal start that saw them sit second in the table heading into the first international break.

Hamburg kicked off with a 0-0 stalemate away to Borussia Mönchengladbach and like Köln, also began that game with just three players who also started the final game of last season. Up next for Merlin Polzin and Co. was the visit of city rivals St. Pauli, who managed to comfortably dispatch HSV by two goals to nil on their own patch – a painful welcome back to the Bundesliga for Die Rothosen.

Post international break, Köln picked up a solitary point from their next three games. That point came away to Wolfsburg, a game in which they had to equalise twice in stoppage time after Maximilian Arnold put the home side in front with nine minutes of stoppage time having already elapsed. Jakub Kamiński’s strike became the latest goal ever scored in the Bundesliga at 90+14’. Matchday 6 brought a third win of the season for the Billy Goats. This time away to Hoffenheim, as the season’s breakout star Said El Mala struck with an outstanding solo goal, showing why he was courted by Premier League clubs over the summer.

After securing only one point from their first two fixtures, Hamburg’s task did not get any easier with a daunting trip to the Allianz Arena. Die Rekordmeister were four goals up inside half an hour, threatening to produce another classic Bayern–HSV hammering. Fortunately for Polzin, Bayern eased off and added only one more before full time. 

Early as it was in the season, the next match was already shaping up to be a must-win for Hamburg as they hosted bottom-club Heidenheim – and win they did, thanks to goals from loanee Luka Vušković and new signing Rayan Philippe. Polzin spoke afterwards of the vindication, he felt: “The victory helped us further develop a belief and a sense of confidence in our own strength”. They would back up that victory with a hard-fought goalless draw at Union Berlin’s Alte Försterei before sealing a comfortable 4-0 home win over Mainz.

Another international break ticked off, Köln picked up four points from their four league games and were also dumped out of the DFB Pokal in the second round at the hands of Bayern Munich. Their only win in that period came against Hamburg at the RheinEnergieStadion – an eventful match in which the visitors received two red cards, allowing the Billy Goats to cruise to victory.

Hamburg suffered defeats to Leipzig and Wolfsburg before winning their cup tie at Heidenheim, setting up a last-16 meeting at home to second-division side Holstein Kiel. They then endured the damaging defeat in Cologne before securing a last-gasp 1–1 draw with Borussia Dortmund at the Volksparkstadion.

All of this means both sides have made a very respectable start to the season. Both would surely snap your hand off if offered their current league positions. Köln sit ninth with a positive goal difference, having scored 17 and conceded 15. Hamburg lie 13th, four points clear of the automatic relegation spots.

1. FC Köln strength in wide areas

Critical to Köln’s success so far has been the emergence of genuine star quality. Kamiński has become one of Köln’s most decisive attacking players, combining directness with tidy end product and consistently driving the team forward. El Mala provides a different kind of spark: highly progressive on the ball, he excels at beating defenders and carrying the ball through tight spaces – epitomised by his wondergoal at the Volkswagen Arena.

Luca Waldschmidt and Marius Bülter, two of the squad’s more experienced attackers, offer composure and intelligent movement. They link play effectively and can produce goals when required. Behind them, Eric Martel anchors the midfield with tireless defensive work and positional discipline, giving Köln the structure that enables its attacking players to flourish.

All in all, Kwasniok’s team have shown they feel at home back in the Bundesliga and have collected the results to prove it. If they can hold on to their best talents through the January window, they should have no trouble staying up – and may even find themselves looking up the table rather than over their shoulders.

Can Hamburg replace Davie Selke?

Without last season’s main goal-getter Selke and with Yussuf Poulsen struggling with injuries, Hamburg are finding it difficult to put the ball in the back of the net. 

Ransford Königsdorffer has been far from his best, with his equaliser against Dortmund standing as his only goal of the season. Polzin’s side lack clarity in their attacking approach: they have attempted the second-most open-play crosses in the league (116), yet those deliveries are aimed at strikers who are not natural target men. 

With Königsdorffer and his main strike partner Rayan Philippe both standing at 5 ft 11 in, they lack the type of dominant aerial forward who helped get them promoted – particularly as Polzin appears unconvinced about giving veteran Robert Glatzel consistent playing time.

What will please Polzin, however, is the high intensity and fighting mentality the team have shown in the early stages of the season. Three new signings encapsulate that spirit. Vušković has displayed real star quality since arriving on loan from Tottenham Hotspur, and the Croatian has won the most aerial duels in the Bundesliga so far. New HSV vice-captain Nicolás Capaldo was signed to play in midfield but has since deputised in the back three after Warmed Omari suffered an injury that has kept him out since September.

Capaldo had his say on his and the team’s mentality in a recent interview with BILD: “I have an intense style of play, I don’t give the ball away and I want to help the team that way. That’s who I am.” The former Boca Juniors midfielder heaped praise on his teammates: “I have great players around me who throw themselves into everything – whether it’s Giorgi, Luka, or Rambo.”

Arguably HSV’s best player this season, Nicolai Remberg – “Rambo,” as he is affectionately known by teammates and fans – arrived from relegated Holstein Kiel and has been ever-present. Like Capaldo, he recently dropped into defence for the match in Cologne.

The club’s CFO, Eric Huwer, recently announced a record turnover of €126.5m, just five months after declaring the club debt-free. It is music to the ears of Polzin, Sporting Director Stefan Kuntz, and Director of Sport Claus Costa as they begin planning for the January transfer window.

GGFN | Harry Good