HSV will play table toppers Dortmund on Friday evening (12.11.10 at 20.15 CET live on HSV ticker). Pitroipa has been confirmed for the journey after suffering from an injury during the week.
Hamburg - Armin Veh will have been happy that one of the injury worries in midweek was on the team bus as it left Hamburg on Thursday afternoon for Dortmund. Jonathan Pitroipa was able to get on the "Rauten-Express" fit after completing the last training session of the week. "Pit is in the squad, even though he hasn't trained much this week" said Veh. This has made the trainer's job much easier for the Dortmund game as it means he will be able to play with an unchanged team for the first time this season. "This is definately an advantage" said Mathijsen. The HSV list is still very long, but the bonus is that their have been no new additions. Van Nistelrooy, Benjamin (torn muscle), Jansen (tooth), Rost, Elia (fitness) and Diekmeier (heel op) are all missing along with the long term casualties Stepanek, Torun (cruciate ligament) and Castelen (knee op) who are now in the rehabilitation phase. The amount of injuries HSV have is well known, and something Veh does not want to concentrate on. "This is not an issue any more. We are only going to focus on the issues which we can influence ourselves". One of those issues, is the game against the league leaders.
Dortmund are without doubt the strongest team in the league at the moment and the stats say it all. They are unbeaten in ten games, winning nine and drawing one. They have scored the most (27) and conceded the least (7) amount of goals in the league while creating the most chances (103). They also have the most dangerous midfield in the league (17 goals and 20 assists). Despite this Hamburg still believe they have a chance in the Signal Iduna Park. "We are not scared of anyone. If you are scared of your opponent then you might as well not turn up. Dortmund may have more points than us but we are a good team and always play well against top teams. We are not easy to beat" said Mathijsen in fighting spirit. Großkreutz and Barrios doubtful It may also be the case that Jürgen Klopp has to adjust his system for the game with two key players doubtful. Kevin Großkreutz complained of muscle problems in his upper thigh during training on Thursday while Barrios sat out shooting practice, also with thigh problems. "I can't say anything at the moment as to whether they will be fit" said Klopp. It would not be surprising for anyone in the HSV dressing room if both players were on the pitch on Friday night. These are issues which the Hamburg management team will have enough time to deal with on the bus journey, where the final tactical tinkerings will made to bring the 3 points back to Hamburg.
Hamburg - Armin Veh will have been happy that one of the injury worries in midweek was on the team bus as it left Hamburg on Thursday afternoon for Dortmund. Jonathan Pitroipa was able to get on the "Rauten-Express" fit after completing the last training session of the week. "Pit is in the squad, even though he hasn't trained much this week" said Veh. This has made the trainer's job much easier for the Dortmund game as it means he will be able to play with an unchanged team for the first time this season. "This is definately an advantage" said Mathijsen. The HSV list is still very long, but the bonus is that their have been no new additions. Van Nistelrooy, Benjamin (torn muscle), Jansen (tooth), Rost, Elia (fitness) and Diekmeier (heel op) are all missing along with the long term casualties Stepanek, Torun (cruciate ligament) and Castelen (knee op) who are now in the rehabilitation phase. The amount of injuries HSV have is well known, and something Veh does not want to concentrate on. "This is not an issue any more. We are only going to focus on the issues which we can influence ourselves". One of those issues, is the game against the league leaders.
Dortmund are without doubt the strongest team in the league at the moment and the stats say it all. They are unbeaten in ten games, winning nine and drawing one. They have scored the most (27) and conceded the least (7) amount of goals in the league while creating the most chances (103). They also have the most dangerous midfield in the league (17 goals and 20 assists). Despite this Hamburg still believe they have a chance in the Signal Iduna Park. "We are not scared of anyone. If you are scared of your opponent then you might as well not turn up. Dortmund may have more points than us but we are a good team and always play well against top teams. We are not easy to beat" said Mathijsen in fighting spirit. Großkreutz and Barrios doubtful It may also be the case that Jürgen Klopp has to adjust his system for the game with two key players doubtful. Kevin Großkreutz complained of muscle problems in his upper thigh during training on Thursday while Barrios sat out shooting practice, also with thigh problems. "I can't say anything at the moment as to whether they will be fit" said Klopp. It would not be surprising for anyone in the HSV dressing room if both players were on the pitch on Friday night. These are issues which the Hamburg management team will have enough time to deal with on the bus journey, where the final tactical tinkerings will made to bring the 3 points back to Hamburg.