Tim Walter would gladly have done without this experience. The suspended Hamburger SV coach suffered for more than 90 minutes in the stands of the Volksparkstadion with and on his team in the 0-0 draw against Holstein Kiel.
The stress level was “tenfold”, the 47-year-old admitted after the northern duel in the 2nd Bundesliga. “You’re on your own, you have to let everything out somehow,” said Walter, who was not allowed to stand on the sidelines because of his red card from the game at Karlsruher SC.
During the upcoming two-week international break, Walter will only have limited time to relax. At the beginning of spring, his team threatens to slip into the low of the season that has been known for the past few years. After the 2:4 a week earlier at KSC, the draw against Kiel was the second game in a row in which Hamburg lost valuable points in the fight for promotion.
For the first time since October 23, they no longer end a weekend on a direct promotion place. “No one is going up yet,” said Captain Sebastian Schonlau. “We wanted to win the game. We didn’t do that in the end. Still, there’s no reason to put our heads down just yet.”
In fact, HSV certainly don’t have any reason to panic just yet. The self-declared goal of the season ascent is still within reach. After the 25th matchday, the Hanseatic League are still on the promotion relegation rank with 49 points. The gap to leaders Darmstadt 98 (52 points) and 1. FC Heidenheim (50) is manageable. The distance to the first non-promotion place four is still comfortable.
The fiercest rivals score
The Hamburgers have to be careful though. Unlike them, the two fiercest rivals set signs before the international break. 1. FC Heidenheim beat HSV 5-2 against KSC on Friday. The Darmstadt team reported back after two zero numbers with a 2-0 win over 1. FC Kaiserslautern on Saturday evening. “We showed the really good response to the two defeats today,” said coach Torsten Lieberknecht.
HSV striker Robert Glatzel repeated the statements that his coach usually makes. “We mustn’t concern ourselves with the others like that. First of all we have to do our homework,” he said. But the favorite for promotion recently had a hard time doing their homework.
In Karlsruhe, for example, the defensive showed significant weaknesses without the injured Schonlau. Schonlau was back against Kiel and gave the defense security. But there was a problem on the offensive – despite 22: 4 shots on goal and 17: 3 corners. “In the end it’s just annoying that you don’t score because you lack a bit of consistency,” said Walter. “And maybe we didn’t deserve that today because of the few erratic situations.”
Schonlau emphasized that the fact that it was only enough for one point against Holstein Kiel was not due to the absence of the coach during the game. “But it’s clear that we prefer him on the sidelines, that he belongs there.” Despite the disappointing draw, Walter still gave praise. “I have to compliment my team and the coaching staff on the way they represented me. It was very, very good,” he said. “For me: I don’t want that anymore, up there.”
