Hamburger SV: 3rd place, 30 points
At Hamburger SV, people have become cautious. In the past few years, ascent was always the declared goal, it never worked out. “Our goal is that we continue to develop”, describes sports director Jonas Boldt the season’s task and repeats it like a mantra. Coach Tim Walter also likes to talk about the fact that he has a young team that has yet to stabilize. What is behind it is clear. The makers want to take the pressure off, the team should play freely in the new year.
The Hanseatic League is currently in good spirits. At the training camp in Sotogrande, Spain, Walter saw a team that “full of passion and full of energy” one “Fireworks down” have. Even before the break, HSV showed in the 1-1 draw against Schalke at the beginning of the second half that they are not wrongly in third place. Only two defeats and only 18 goals conceded are top values in the league two.
Forecast: Hamburger SV remains stable and ends up in at least third place.
FC Schalke 04: 4th place, 30 points
Schalke is doomed to win: The expectations for the further course of the season are clear due to the high mountain of debt that has to be paid off: In the end, the ascent must be – be it directly or via the detour via relegation. Despite the change in personnel and the bumpy start to the season, it is within reach.
It should judge goal scorer Simon Terodde. The record scorer in the second division has scored twelve times to date, eleven of them on the first nine match days. He missed the last four games before the winter break due to injury. At the end of the year, the 33-year-old also tested positive for Corona and did not return to Schalke training until January 4th.
Forecast: The pressure on the coach and the team is too high. Schalke won’t make it.