Hamburger SV welcomes Hannover 96 to the north duel today. Louis Schaub, who once failed to impress in the HSV jersey, will also be among the guests. On his return he could make the difference for Hannover.
The former Austrian national football player showed just what he’s capable of last weekend. Hannover experienced a bitter first half against Sandhausen – hardly anything went together. The “Reds” were lucky that they were only 1-0 down just before the break. Coach Stefan Leitl had to act. In the 39th minute of the game he switched from a three-man to a four-man defense, replaced a defender and brought in another offensive power in Louis Schaub.
It wasn’t just Schaub who then heralded the turning point. But the native of Hesse provided a boost and scored the goal worth seeing to make it 3-1 shortly before the end. Leitl praised the “super energy from the boys” and stressed: “The will to turn the game around was absolutely recognizable.”
Schaub was able to record what was probably the best game in the 96 jersey, the performance of the summer signing has been very changeable so far. In any case, he recommended himself for the starting eleven – just in time for the (Northern) duel with his ex-club today (1 p.m., in the NDR Livecenter) in the Volksparkstadion, which was sold out with 57,000 spectators.
Hamburg wants to “push Hannover in behind”
Hamburger SV, for whom Schaub was loaned out in the second half of the 2019/2020 season, has not won three times in the second division. Even if coach Tim Walter continues to demonstratively carry the mantra “We know that we will rise”, the former Bundesliga Dino is battered. The defense in particular is always a concern.
It’s good for HSV that after his suspension, captain and defense chief Sebastian Schonlau is ready for action again. Walter wants his team to dominate the game against Hannover and be in control of what’s happening. “We want to push the opponent in behind.” He was basically satisfied with the performance of his team, even in the games without a win. “But we have to be more consistent and reward ourselves more.”
The second league is a tough league. It’s not just a door to get into the Bundesliga, it’s a staircase. And I have to go step by step.”
— HSV-Trainer Tim Walter
In the first leg, it was Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer who rewarded Hamburg: In the second minute of added time, the attacker scored after a long solo run to make it 2-1. “It could be like that again,” emphasized Walter, but also invited his other players to make the difference. Jean-Luc Dompé is out of the question. The left winger is still plagued by ankle problems, for which the Frenchman had to step back in training. Definitely absent are defender Javi Montero (suspended) and left-back Miro Muheim (fifth yellow card).
96 fans love Schaub
But even if Hamburg is currently vulnerable, said 96 coach Leitl: “In Hamburg, the game against the ball has priority for us.” Despite the experience from the Sandhausen game and central defender Julian Börner’s suspension, he wants to start again with a back three.
If the Hanover fans have their way, Schaub should still be on the pitch from the start. The community chose the 28-year-old as the player of the Sandhausen game. Schaub’s memories of Hamburg are modest. He was only used eight times from the start in the HSV jersey. The performance record of the offensive man is manageable: an assist and no goal. And so things are already going much better for Schaub in Hanover with two goals and one assist. The people of Lower Saxony would certainly not mind if Schaub made the difference again at the old place of work.
Possible lineups
HSV: Heuer Fernandes – Heyer, David, Schonlau, Katterbach – Meffert – Reis, Suhonen – Jatta, Glatzel, Kittel
Hannover 96: Zieler – Neumann, Krajnc, Kunze – Muroya, Köhn – Besuschkow, Schaub – Nielsen – Beier, Teuchert
This topic in the program:
The NDR 2 Bundesliga show | 08.04.2023 | 13:00 ‘O clock