2. Bundesliga 2022/23 MD22 Preview: Darmstadt vs Hamburger SV
The 2. Bundesliga league leaders go head-to-head in the topspiel der Woche in primetime, with victor placing a firm claim on promotion. Darmstadt has been in incredible form, a perfect four from four to start 2023, with the only defeat coming on the opening matchday to Jahn Regensburg. Hamburger SV is in an excellent position for promotion they have been seeking for five seasons, but the question remains if they’ll follow through or fall into the same traps for seasons past.
Darmstadt, last time out, were passable in their performance against Hansa Rostock. After a first half where Torsten Lieberknecht’s side managed just a single shot on goal, Darmstadt found a way to break the hosts down and eventually made the breakthrough. Phillip Tietz stepped up to the plate to score a superb free-kick to beat the impenetrable Markus Kolke.
Hamburg also had a tricky outing against another relegation candidate Arminia Bielefeld. After fortuitously opening the scoring through Ludovit Reis, Hamburg gave up clumsy goal moments into the second half. But Hamburg turned on the heat after conceding and got their reward five minutes later when Jean-Luc Dompé found Bakary Jatta at the back post to give Tim Walter’s side the victory.
We talk about games that could change the course of a season, and this is undoubtedly one of those. The question remains whose football will reign supreme at the Merck-spiel-am Böllenfalltor on Saturday night?
Last time they met
Hamburger SV 1:2 SV Darmstadt 98
HSV: (87’ Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer)
SVD: (4’ Patric Pfeiffer, 7’ Phillip Tietz)
We saw a thoroughly entertaining and tense affair when the two sides met on Matchday 5. Darmstadt jumped Hamburg in the early phase, scoring twice in the opening 10 minutes through Patric Pfeiffer and Phillip Tietz. The game descended into chaos when Klaus Gjasula received his marching orders on 57 minutes.
Then, Aaron Opuku joined Gjasula moments later after kicking Fabian Holland in the chest. Hamburg was able to break through late in the game thanks to Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer, but it wasn’t enough as Darmstadt took the spoils.
Key players
Phillip Tietz
It hasn’t been a replication season for Phillip Tietz, but that isn’t to deny his importance to this Darmstadt side. With 8 goals from 21 league appearances, 7 shy of the 15 he managed last season. Tietz is still Darmstadt’s top goal scorer, with the burden shared amongst Braydon Manu and Mathias Honsak.
With Tietz, Darmstadt have a striker who is physical, quick and dynamic. The ideal striker to fit in a system that plays three attackers.
Why?
He has the strength to matchup against lumbering centre-backs, but also the decisiveness to take on even the wiriest of fullbacks. This makes him a seriously tricky matchup for opposition coaches.
Despite Darmstadt’s 36 goals this season, which compared to the chasing pack is quite modest. But with Tietz leading the line, Darmstadt are always a chance of securing a bag of goals and most importantly, winning games.
Robert Glatzel
Prior to the last matchday, Robert Glatzel had been the top goalscorer of the 2. Bundesliga with 14 goals to his name. Put into perspective, Glatzel has scored 35% of the goals scored for HSV and it’s a big reason as to why Hamburg are in serious promotional challenge.
So what makes Glatzel such a goalscoring threat? He’s a fox in the box with the majority of his goals scored coming from headers or tap-ins, but that doesn’t do Glatzel enough justice. Glatzel is excellent at reading the play and getting himself into dangerous areas. Any decent ball into the box gives Glatzel a chance to convert for Hamburg.
Glatzel has happy memories of his last time in Darmstadt, he scored four times in a 0:5 away victory.
From the coaches
Here’s what the coaches had to say.
Torsten Lieberknecht
"Aaron Seydel, Patric Pfeiffer, Braydon Manu, Klaus Gjasula, Tobias Kempe and Jannik Müller will be out. In the case of Mathias Bader, there's a chance we might get him into the squad. I'm assuming everyone else will be there tomorrow."
"The boys are very well prepared. All the fit players are in good shape. The injuries are part of our history this season, but we're still not moping about it."
"We want to do what we've always done. Pay respect to our opponents and show that respect with our own focused performance. We showed what's possible in the first leg."
"We'll bring incredible energy, tactical and footballing understanding. And we'll be driven by our cauldron of noise from the fans. The stadium will tremble."
"The home game from last season doesn't matter anymore. We're just looking at tomorrow's game."
Tim Walter
"We are up against a very clever team that plays very intensively. So it's possible that it will be emotional. But that's what football is all about.”
“Darmstadt play exactly how you have to in the 2. Liga. They score their goals with great efficiency and hardly concede any. Our goal is to go to Darmstadt and take the three points with us.”
"Bakary Jatta has already scored three goals this season, he is approaching his best. When you see the verve with which he tackles the wing, he is indispensable for us. He is helping us to keep going.”
"The boys are training very intensively and are constantly improving their sessions. I'm happy to have such great quality in the squad and want to send the best eleven onto the pitch on Saturday”
"Darmstadt is a very good opponent. But we stick to our way, want to see the ball as the holy grail and keep it with us. The better we manage to do that, the higher the chance of winning!”
Expected lineups
Darmstadt's changes in the defensive third are becoming a more frequent occurrence, which makes their season so far more remarkable. Despite winning in Rostock, there were casualties with Jannik Müller and the 2. Bundesliga's assist leader Tobias Kempe both succumbed to injury.
In the back three, 19-year-old Clemens Riedel will likely make his first start since November alongside Thomas Isherwood and Christoph Zimmermann. The replacement for Kempe is less clear. Fabian Schnellhardt was left out of the squad last time, while Keanen Bennetts played the entirety of the second half. Bennetts would be the likely option but depending on their tactics, Schnellhardt provides more defensive ability in midfield.
Hamburg is likely to keep the same starting 11 that beat Arminia Bielefeld. They have many attractive attacking options, such as András Németh, Sonny Kittel and Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer, all will play a vital role off the bench.
Prediction
A fascinating encounter under the lights of primetime fitting of the title of topspiel. There is much excitement for both sides. Darmstadt could have a three-game cushion over Hamburg if they secure the points. On the other hand, Hamburg can close the gap to a single point if they score revenge from matchday 5.
I’m predicting a 2:1 win for Darmstadt.