By Ben Sully @SullyBen
On Monday, Hamburger SV will attempt to overturn a three-goal deficit when they face VfB Stuttgart in the second leg of the relegation/promotion play-off.
Hamburger SV
HSV head into the second leg off the back of a difficult weak that has left their promotion hopes hanging by a thread. Hamburg were on the brink of promotion when they claimed a 2-1 victory over Sandhausen on the final day of the season, but two late goals from Heidenheim sent HSV into the play-off.
After missing out on a place in the top two in the most agonising of circumstances, Hamburg were unable to pick themselves up in time for the first leg with Stuttgart. It proved to be a demoralising outing for HSV, who fell to a heavy 3-0 defeat and ended the contest with ten men after Anssi Suhonen was sent off.
Tim Walter’s side will now return to the Volksparkstadion where they will need to pull off an improbable comeback to secure promotion.
Hamburg avoided defeat in their final 10 home games in the 2.Bundesliga, scoring at least three goals in six of those matches. The hosts know they will need to win by three goals or more, which is something they accomplished in two of their 17 home league games this season.
Team News
András Németh, László Bénes and Noah Katterbach are ruled out with injury issues, while there are doubts over Jonas David’s availability. Suhonen will miss Monday’s contest through suspension after being shown a straight red card in the first leg.
VfB Stuttgart
Stuttgart will look to extend their stay in the top flight into a fourth season when they face HSV on Monday. Die Schwaben took a significant step to securing their Bundesliga survival in Thursday’s first leg, as Konstantinos Mavropanos, Josha Vagnoman and Serhou Guirassy all got on the scoresheet to seal a 3-0 victory.
Sebastian Hoeneß would have been pleased to see his side end a nine-game competitive run without keeping a clean sheet. Die Schwaben know that a shutout is not required in the second leg, but they will still be keen to produce a strong defensive display, as they look to protect their three-goal lead.
Stuttgart have only lost by three goals or more in two games in the 2022-23 season. They fell to a 5-0 defeat in October’s meeting with Borussia Dortmund while Union Berlin cruised to a 3-0 win over die Schwaben in April.
The visitors have proven to be tough to beat on the road in recent weeks, having lost just one of their previous five competitive away matches.
Team News
Florian Müller will continue in goal for Stuttgart after Hoeneß confirmed that Fabian Bredlow remains sidelined with an injury issue.
#HSV #miracle