Q & A: Talking to a Hamburg fan

Before we face off against the Northern rivals of Hamburg, we just had the opportunity to grab a quick Q&A with HSV news, @HSVnewsEN. Check them out at

Eagerly trying to learn more about our opposition's state of mind, these talks among fans offer great insight to what the other point of view is. So, here we go:

Q: "What's the deal with your forward situation, Bobby Wood's suspension notwithstanding?"

A: "The forward situation is a complicated one. Because of our lack of playmaker capable of playing the #10 role successfully, Gisdol seems to be favouring the 4-4-2 with Wood & Lasogga leading the line. Wood's 3 game suspension is a huge blow to our struggling attack and it will be interesting to see if Gisdol reverts to a 4-2-3-1, or gives our young summer signing from Eintracht, Luca Waldschmidt, the chance to replace Wood in the 4-4-2."

Q: "Is HSV already in survival mode? Or is no one pushing the panic button just yet?"

A: "Talk has already turned to avoiding relegation unfortunately. Gisdol said as much in a recent interview when he pointed to his experience at Hoffenheim when he took over with with 7 games remaining and saved them on the final day vs Dortmund. Panic mode will definitely set in if we cannot score any points against teams like Bremen, Darmstadt & Augsburg in the next month."

Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Bongarts/Getty Images

Q: "BVB is somewhat of a good opponent for HSV, why are they winning so many games against us?"

A: "Apart from the victories under Thorsten Fink, when we were actually a decent, functioning side. There have been two occasions where we have replaced our coach right before, or just a few short weeks before playing Dortmund. Joe Zinnbauer took over 3 games before we faced and beat BVB. Mirko Slomka was appointed days before a 3-1 win over them. I think a mix of renewed hope instilled by the new coaches and a lack of focus/overconfidence from BVB's players have led to the results of the past few seasons."

Q: "Was Markus Gisdol the right choice or should they have kept Bruno Labaddia?"

A: "Early indications would suggest the problem is not something that can be fixed with a simple coaching change. The squad of players available to Gisdol is a joke considering we spent €32m on reinforcements during the summer window. Despite spending so much, the team entered the season unprepared and lacking depth in midfield & defense. Didi Beiersdorfer was the squad planner and the blame has to fall to him for that.

Personally I wanted Labbadia to stay. The players (Halilovic aside) all liked Labbadia and wanted him to remain. Our best performance in the league this season came against Bayern the day before everyone knew Labbadia was to be sacked. The players were still fighting for him and our captain said after that narrow loss to Bayern that they wanted their coach to remain in charge."

Thanks to @HSVnewEN for providing us with these insights. On to a thrilling game tomorrow!