Injury on starting debut? Poulsen explains his substitution | OneFootball

Against BVB, Yussuf Poulsen made his eagerly anticipated starting lineup debut for HSV. However, there was another moment of shock.

From HSV's perspective, it was perhaps the most anxious moment of the game: In the 61st minute, Yussuf Poulsen suddenly sat on the grass at the Volksparkstadion, clutching his thigh. Many HSV fans likely feared for a moment that the captain had injured himself again in the 1-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund. After all, it was Poulsen's first game in the starting lineup since his move to Hamburg.

But after the final whistle, the 31-year-old was able to quickly give the all-clear. “I was just exhausted. It wouldn’t have lasted another minute,” Poulsen explained with a broad grin. Instead of an injury, it was simply the lack of match practice that forced him to be substituted. “I can feel that I’m still lacking a bit of fitness, but that will come step by step,” said the Danish striker.

Nur die Raute – All News about HSV

Poulsen is happy for his striking partner

Sportingly, his starting lineup debut was rather mixed. Early on, Poulsen received a yellow card for a harsh tackle against Emre Can. Against the strong Dortmund trio of Emre Can, Nico Schlotterbeck, and Waldemar Anton, he also found it difficult to hold onto the ball. Nevertheless, he showed commitment and leadership, exactly the qualities for which HSV signed him.

In the end, Poulsen also got to celebrate a successful moment. His substitute Ransford Königsdörffer headed in the well-deserved 1-1 equalizer in injury time. “Ransi did a great job. Sometimes it’s good to come off the bench,” praised the captain his teammate. “That was awesome. We all sprinted to the corner flag,” he already explained to DAZN.

After three consecutive defeats, the draw against BVB was a moral breakthrough. Poulsen looks optimistically forward. His credo: “We know that we will get better and better.” He now has two weeks of international break to further improve his fitness so that the next starting lineup adventure lasts longer than 60 minutes.

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