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HSV to play Fürth

Jonathan HardingMay 15, 2014

After a disastrous season, the Bundesliga's dinosaur has two games to beat underdogs Greuther Fürth to save themselves from top-flight extinction.

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Bundesliga Hamburger SV gegen Bayen München
Image: Franklin/Bongarts/Getty Images

The famous clock in Hamburg's Imtech-Arena has long kept record of Hamburg's Bundesliga status. It currently stands at 50 years and 264 days. Those days are numbered though, and come Sunday night (18.05.2014) the clock will either stop completely or tick louder than ever. Hamburg face Greuther Fürth in the first leg of the relegation playoff game on Thursday evening, and it's very much a case of now or never for the Bundesliga's longest surving club.

Having finished the season in 16th spot with just 27 points from their 34 games, Hamburg now face the two most important games not only this season, but also perhaps in the club's recent history. The statistics favor the higher Bundesliga side - in the previous 15 relegation play-off matches the top-flight club has saved themselves on ten occasions. There are plenty of reasons to consider HSV, nicknamed Germany's Bundesliga "dinosaur," close to extinction though.

Things have been catastrophic in defense this season for Hamburg. Poor positioning and a lack of communication has seen them concede a hefty 75 league goals - a total that is not just the worst of all 18 top-flight sides, but also the worst in Germany's top three leagues. Now that the club's season is on the line, former Germany internationals Heiko Westermann, Marcell Jansen, and Rene Adler certainly have a point to prove.

Bundesligauhr HSV Hamburg
Can Hamburg give themselves an advantage to take to Fürth, and perhaps save the clock?Image: picture-alliance/augenklick/firo Sportphoto

Save the dinosaurs

If Hamburg are going to be saved, it will be their individual quality that (once again) spares their blushes. Much of the club's hopes rest on the shoulders of striker Pierre-Michel Lasogga and attacking midfield duo Rafael van der Vaart and Hakan Calhanoglu. It was Lasogga who saw off Fürth when the two sides met in the second round of this season's German Cup - Calhanoglu provided the assist - and there's no doubt the striker's return on the final day of the season visibly boosted the team's attacking potency.

Coach Mirko Slomka will be delighted that the first leg is at home. An expected crowd of 60,000 fans in the Imtech-Arena will aid Hamburg's cause, but Slomka knows his side will have to be ready: "If you're not tense now, you shouldn't be here," he said.

The last thing Hamburg want is to travel to Fürth needing the type of performance that has been beyond them all season - particularly under Slomka. The coach has yet to win an away game with HSV since taking over, and you have to go back to the end of April 2013 for his last road win in the Bundesliga (when he was still manager of Hannover 96). Their opponents in that game? Greuther Fürth.

Things have changed for Hamburg's challengers though, most notably in the dugout. Former Hoffenheim youth coach Frank Kramer felt the opportunity to take the top job couldn't be missed and since he took over at the end of last season, neither he or the club has looked back. His Fürth side may have finished the season two points shy of automatic promotion after Paderborn's final day heroics, but they top scored in the second Bundesliga (with 64 goals) and boasted the second best goal difference (+26).

Fußball 2. Bundesliga Greuther Fuerth gegen SV Sandhausen Frank Kramer
Kramer has made a positive start to his managerial careerImage: Getty Images

Yet Kramer knows that for all of their positivity this season, they have to approach the game with the right mindset. "We want to step onto the pitch with aggression, unity and plenty of courage," said the 42-year-old. "And we want to cause Hamburg problems."

With unity the focus for Fürth, they know that if they deliver, the win will be greater than any regular relegation playoff. As Fürth goalkeeper Woflgang Hesl said in the pre-match press conference, "We can write history and relegate Hamburg."