Promising signs in friendly: are HSV’s new boys ready to start? | OneFootball

The debut of Fabio Vieira and Albert Sambi Lokonga in the friendly against Hannover was the only positive side note. Both newcomers could immediately slip into the starting eleven.

The result was sobering: against second division leaders Hannover 96, HSV once again presented itself in weak form and deservedly lost 1-3. In the absence of all national team players, familiar patterns from recent times repeated themselves: defensively, they were too prone to errors, offensively far too harmless.

On the positive side: for the first time, the prominent new signings Albert Sambi Lokonga and Fabio Vieira were on the pitch. And even though they couldn’t turn around the unsatisfactory result against the second division team, the first impression of the Arsenal transfers was striking.

Both newcomers were substituted in after about an hour and immediately brought energy to the game. Coach Merlin Polzin later found praising words: “They have the level, whether it’s off-the-ball movement, positioning, or communication with the ball at their feet—they definitely have that. You could see that very well in the last half hour.”

Lokonga, a Belgian international, is expected to provide the necessary creative impulses in defensive midfield. Hamburg had worked for weeks to secure his signing. Vieira, on the other hand, is planned for a more advanced role. The Portuguese is likely to act primarily as a right-sided attacking midfielder, making the promoted team’s attacks more versatile. “The quality Fabio has in possession will do us good. You could already see that against Hannover,” Polzin also explained.

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HSV wants to “integrate new signings step by step”

The question remains: will the newcomers already be in the starting eleven for the away game against FC Bayern (13.09, 6:30 p.m.)? Polzin wants to closely monitor the fitness of the two new signings in the coming days. “We don’t want to overload them, but rather integrate them step by step. But with their quality, it will certainly work quickly,” the coach emphasized.

Tottenham loanee Luka Vuskovic is also expected to play an important role sooner rather than later. In training after the derby defeat against St. Pauli (0-2), and thus just one day after his signing, the 18-year-old immediately impressed. Currently, however, he is away on international duty with the Croatian U21 national team.

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