Football Season Guide

Hamburger SV conjured yet another narrow escape last campaign to maintain their proud record of having featured in each and every season of the Bundesliga. However it was another poor season for Hamburg as they went through under three different coaches with Mirko Slomka and Josef Zinnbauer not proving to be up to the mark. At one time Hamburg looked certain for the drop but the timely arrival of Bruno Labbadia helped them end the season in good form and avoid it, though they needed a late show by Mauro Diaz and Nicolai Muller to overcome Karlsruher SC in the relegation playoffs. Labbadia will be hoping for a far more comfortable season this time around and the Hamburg coach has been busy overhauling the squad in the summer. The biggest departure is that of Rafael van der Vaart with the Dutch midfielder's contract not being renewed and was let go on a free transfer. Marcell Jansen, Heiko Westermann, Slobodan Rajkovic and Maximilian Beister have also been released along with Lasse Sobiech and Jacques Zoua while Hamburg decided not to renew Julian Green's loan. Jonathan Tah was sold to Bayer Leverkusen while Valon Behrami has also moved on after just one season at the club. There have been a number of arrivals though with Hamburg converting Lewis Holtby's loan into a permanent move and though the midfielder looked a decent acquisition on loan, it remains to be seen whether he is ready to take over the creative mantle from van der Vaart. Hamburg had the worst record in terms of attack last season and Labbadia has looked to address the problem by signing Sven Schipplock from Hoffenheim, though Pierre-Michel Lasogga is expected to be the first choice striker provided he stays fit. Michael Gregoritsch impressed with Bochum last season and will be eager to test his ability in the top flight of German football. Albin Ekdal has also been signed from Italian club Cagliari and the midfielder is one of the two players expected to slot straight into the starting lineup. Defender Emir Spahic is the other new arrival expected to improve Labbadia's options in the defense while Gotoku Sakai will be competing with Dennis Diekmeier for the right back spot. The new arrivals have improved the overall quality of the side though Labbadia is unlikely to tinker much with the starting lineup that he had settled on near the end of the season. Much will depend on how good a start Hamburg will make in the new season but if their end of the campaign form is anything to go by, they are likely to have a vastly improved campaign this time around.