HSV star fires derby warning: "DFB-Pokal won't knock us off course" | OneFootball

Hamburg’s anticipation for the Northern Derby took a heavy blow on Wednesday evening. The bitter cup exit against Kiel dampened the mood, at least temporarily.

However, the team was visibly determined to quickly look ahead. “The game is already behind us,” assured coach Merlin Polzin after the 2:4 defeat in the penalty shootout in the Sky interview. “Honestly, we’re already moving on and the preparation for Bremen begins.”

Everything is supposed to go better now against the green-and-white archrival. Because what HSV showed in the DFB Cup round of 16 was clearly not enough for a team that aspires to play in the top division again next season.

Polzin’s criticism was clear: defensively, they allowed far too many chances against the struggling second-division side, while offensively, they rarely posed any danger. The surprising and emotional 2:1 win against VfB Stuttgart just three days earlier had kicked off derby week in the best possible way, but Kiel quickly knocked HSV off their stride again. The poor performance annoyed many fans even more than the elimination itself.

Nur die Raute – All the news about HSV

HSV star assures: “We’re all fired up”

And yet: within the team, the mood isn’t turning sour. Ahead of his first Northern Derby, midfielder Nicolai Remberg sent a clear message. “The cup isn’t going to throw us off track now,” he emphasized. After the final whistle, the fans had already made it unmistakably clear to the team what matters against Werder. “We’re all fired up,” Remberg assured.

Merlin Polzin struck a similar tone. “We will definitely show a different side of ourselves on Sunday,” the 35-year-old made clear ahead of his first Northern duel as head coach. Polzin had already experienced both second-division matches in the 2021/2022 season as assistant coach. Now, for the first time, the full derby experience awaits him!

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