Hertha only finds funds against HSV at the beginning
On the lawn, both teams could tell what the game was about. “We have remedies against HSV’s game idea,” said a confident Felix Magath at the press conference before the relegation first leg. However, these means only became clear at the beginning of the duel. Hertha had Hamburger SV, who were otherwise so safe in combination, under control. But in the course of the first round, the Hanseatic League became stronger and stronger. But that wasn’t enough.
A few weeks ago, Hertha was close to staying up in the Bundesliga under Magath.
After the victories in Augsburg (1-0) and against VfB Stuttgart (2-0) he was celebrated. Magath brought important virtues back to the team: passion and struggle. Also in the two games, the capital city did not convince with playful finesse. But you scored. However, against Bielefeld (1:1), Mainz (1:2) and Dortmund (1:2) the Hertha missed the match point for relegation. Berlin conceded late goals in all three games.
Hertha still well served with 0: 1
One thing is clear: Hertha also fought self-sacrificingly in the games they lost and in the first leg against Hamburger SV. The last half hour against HSV was particularly bitter for the Berliners. The Magath-Elf didn’t get any more access, and in the end can even be happy that they didn’t lose the game higher. There is a lack of quality in the team.
Now the coach, who seemed to have the team under control, has to be careful that his team doesn’t completely derail. At the beginning of the week, Magath probably had trouble with leading player Kevin-Prince Boateng. This is reported by “Sport Bild”. It should have been about the cohesion within the team. An indication that something happened between the coach and one of his most important players: Boateng sat on the bench for 90 minutes against HSV. When asked why he didn’t play, Magath said irritably at the press conference after the game: “Because the game didn’t go well.”
In general, Hertha hardly became dangerous after game combinations. If anything, it was individual actions – mostly by striker Ishak Belfodil – that led to danger in Hamburg’s sixteen. “We tried to equalize with individual actions. Unfortunately, we didn’t succeed,” Magath had to admit after the game.
Cologne serves Hertha as an example
Nevertheless, nothing is lost for Hertha after the first leg. This is shown by an example from last year: At that time, 1. FC Köln played in the relegation against Holstein Kiel. Cologne also lost the first leg against Kiel 0-1 at home. In the second leg, FC turned up the heat, won 5-1 and held the class in the end.