Meet Marcus “the Mountain” Berg, ex- of FC Groningen of the Eredivisie, and newest member of HSV. The story broke Friday evening (European time) by the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf. Berg’s arrival was announced on the German part of the HSV website, but not the English version (Time out:  If anyone associated with the club reads this stupid blog, how about keeping the English version of the club site up to speed with the German side? Is that asking too much?) If you have been following this story, you know that Berg is a true goal scorer, and in the mold of a KJH–equally deadly with his head and his feet. In the past two seasons for Groningen, Berg has tallied 32 goals in 56 Eredivisie matches. Not too shabby.

You know what else is nice? Scooping somebody else for a change, instead of being owned by other Bundesliga bloggers. So I got that goin’ for me. Which is nice.

Next up is to sign another defender and the two names which continue to come up are Philippe Senderos of Arsenal and Rasmus Bengtssen of Trelleborg (Sweden). I’d put my money on Bengtssen if I were a wagering type.

Also, there has been some scuttlebut that VDV *may* be on his way back to Hamburg, and those same stories are quick to point out that the lovely and talented Sylvie has been pushing him for such a move. HSV are even said to be trying to track down a wealthy benefactor to foot the bill for such a move so as not to jeopardize the financial solvency of the club. The problem is not the transfer fee, though, but Rafa’s €4M+ wage packet. Hoffman has said there is no money to bring in VDV, but he is our Prodigal Son and I know that many HSV supporters would welcome him back with open arms.

The Europa League draw was this morning and we ended up with the winner of FK Suduva (Lithiuania) or Randers FC (Denmark). Third round qualifying takes place July 30 (away) and August 6 (home).  Randers won the first leg 0:1 yesterday.

Final thought–Bruno has decided to pick his own captain, which leaves David Jarolim in a tight spot. Jaro is on the wrong side of 30 and plays a position where we have a WHOLE lot of depth (Ze Roberto, Rincon, Tavares, and maybe even Lorik Cana)–is he expendable at this point or am I reading too much into the situation?

When his contract is up, he will become the head South American scout for HSV based in Brazil. He said that the most important factors in chosing Hamburg were the fact that they offered the third year and that his wife and children wouldn’t have to learn a new culture by staying in Germany–he was being pursued by a number of the larger clubs in the Premiership. Oh, and we also signed Robert Tesche from Bielefeld.

In other news, training camp has finally begun, but with only 16 players on the first team roster. The Ze Roberto signing is a real coup for us, but as I wrote throughout all of 2008/09, we need depth in addition to quality. We have national team players at every position on the pitch–seriously think about it. The only two guys who are not starting for their national side are Frank Rost and Alex Silva. But there is *zero* second line talent, particularly up front. I would like very much to see Labbadia give youngsters like Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Anis Ben-Hatira a chance.  According to Bild, the negotiations for Eljero Elia have ceased with Lyon now looking at Elia to replace the departed Karim Benzema (and this part of the Hamburg Offside is a HUGE Benzema fan, but I wonder where the hell he is going to play. AND since Real now have Benzema, could we have KJH? Just a thought . . .).  In light of these developments, HSV have shifted their affections attention to acquiring (in no particular order) Vagner Love (25) of CSKA Moscow and Welliton (22) of Spartak Moscow.

Same story goes on to say that Bruno is kinda pissed at BMJ for setting such a late start to camp, but what are you going to do? His focus right now is to get the players he has right now prepared for the Europa Cup qualifying matches and the first round of the Pokal . . .

So that’s all for now from the Hamburg Offside. If you are reading this outside the USA, enjoy your weekend. If you are in the States, have a happy Fourth and celebrate the independence of our nation by blowing up a small part of it! Cheers!

Sylvie van Der Vaart, the lovely and talented TV-presenter-wife of our boy Rafa, recently underwent surgery for breast cancer. Sylvie’s prognosis for recovery and cure is good, as the cancer was detected in its early stages. As part of her treatment protocol, she will need to undergo a course of chemotherapy this summer.

I hope that I speak for all HSV supporters (and citizens of Hamburg) when I say that I wish Sylvie the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.  Of course, this news allows the Hamburg Offside to post more pictures of our favorite WAG . . .

By the way, the comment I have been trying to vet was on a radio report that HSV had signed Twente striker Eljero Elia . . .

There’s a great story in the online edition of Welt today detailing all the known goings and potential comings of each of the 1. Bundesliga clubs this summer. So what’s the HSV angle to this story? On the known goings, there’s not much new–we all know that Ivica Olic is gone to the Bavarians, that all of the winter loaners were given back (No thank you!), and, oh, we have a new trainer. Among the players leaving the club that I haven’t (and neither has Evan) touched on are Thimothee Atouba and Bastian Reinhardt. Atouba was offered a contract extension this winter (at his current wages) as he was rehabbing his torn achilles; he rejected that offer presumably because he thought he could get more money on the open market. Well, there isn’t a huge demand for petulant defenders who are recovering from major injury, and bottom line–Atouba had no takers. Reinhardt is a bit more of a sticky situation. Basti is among the all time club leaders in matches played and is certainly a fan favorite (in stark contrast to Atouba on both accounts), but seemed to have slowed a step in the 2008 Rückrunde. Basti split time with Alex Silva in the Hinrunde this season, and negotititaions with the club on a contract extension at that time not only stalled, they ceased.  

Weld lists Alex Silva (back to Brazil, AC Milan, Sevilla), Marcell Jansen (Juventus), Mladen Petric (Wolfsburg), Piotr Trochowski (everybody) as potential exits. To a man, the Hamburg management have said no way Jose, nobody’s leaving the club this summer, which we all know means unless the price is right. Let’s face it–last summer, would you have thought that Nigel de Jong would EVER leave HSV? Me either. What I read about Alex Silva was that he wanted out because Jol was playing him in the midfield and that he would never get a look for the Selecão if all he ever played was midfield–he wanted back in central defense. With Reinhardt’s and Michael Gravgaard’s departures, I look for him to move back into defense, and be happy.

Predictably, what interested me is all of the potential newcomers listed by Weld:  Niko Kranjcar of Pompey (who was rumored [there's that word again] to be on his way last summer), Kostas Katsouranis of Benfica (almost a sure thing he’s coming),  Tim Borrowski of Bayern (on the outs with Munich management), Eljero Elia of Twente (who is now reportedly on his way to Ajax since BMJ flew the coup), and Hamburg native Ivan Klasnic, now that Nantes have been relegated to Ligue 2. But the REALLY interesting names are Alexander Hleb of Barca, our beloved Rafael van Der Vaart of Real, and Kevin Kuryani of Schalke. And FYI, our transfer budget this summer is about €16-18 million.

Hleb is not coming to HSV; but are VDV and Kuryani?

Another fun little bit on the Weld web site is a reader poll to determine the greatest HSV player os all time. Here’s the poll in German, because it’s pretty self explanatory. My vote went to Uwe Seeler. Coincidentally, he’s the leading vote-getter right now.

No first hand analysis from yours truly this week–the match was not on TV in the US and both of the feeds I was watching crapped out before Petric’s first goal. . .

More bad news from the training room: Alex Silva has ”ruptured” ligament in his ankle (a bad sprain, in layman’s terms) and has been shut-down for the remainder of 2008.  This is one of those times where the long winter break is beneficial to us. BUT, this leaves the defense woefully short of bodies, with Bastian Reinhardt and Thimothee Atouba also out. Colin Benjamin should see time in Alex Silva’s spot . . . he’s the only defender that’s fit.

I don’t know about y’all, but Alex Silva is really growing on me. I was ecstatic when we traded for Petric, pleasantly surprised when we bought Marcell Jansen (though his reputation at Bayern for being injured often was well earned), intrigued when we bought Thiago Neves (but now am having second thoughts), and relieved when we bought Alex Silva for the hijacked Luciano Monzon. Of the 4, Petric has been everything we could have wanted and more, scoring 7 goals in 10 starts for HSV so far. Alex Silva, after a brief learning period, has adjusted to the Bundesliga magnificently, and is being held out by BMJ as a model to Thiago Neves (who so far has to be considered a flop). Despite being on crutches for a while, Alex Silva has a bounce to his step–his former club, São Paolo, are Brazilian champions.

So we head into the final league match of 2008 against Eintracht Frankfurt at the ‘Bank, and at this point, I think we need to say that things are going pretty well, despite all the injuries HSV have suffered. I think that the results from the first few weeks of the season got our hopes up a little too high, and now the side know that nobody’s going to hand them the title. By the start of the 2nd half of the season, we can count on the return of Alex Silva, Reinhardt, and most importantly, Dutch international Nigel de Jong. We all saw how this side performs when all the players are fit; staying healthy is a bit of a cliché in sport, but for HSV it is paramount to any chance they have at the CL. And for me, that’s the real prize. If we won the title, I’m not sure what I’d do with myself, but making the Champions League (even through qualifying) is a reasonable expectation for this year’s team. It was a reasonable expectation of last year’s team, too, but VDV’s pending transfer, the manager search and a petulant Vincent Kompany pretty much derailed that team. Huub Stevens had lost the dressing room by the time the players returned from the winter break and Beiersdorfer and Hoffman didn’t do us any favors by stubornly prolonging the search (although in retrospect, it was fortunate that they picked BMJ and not Fred Rutten).

Preview of the Frankfurt match to follow shortly.

•I have been continually questioning Jerome Boateng’s absence from the starting XI, especially in light of the injuries to Thimothee Atouba and Marcell Jansen. Well, I guess we have our answer:  BMJ has “Big plans with him, which he knows well. . .” Jol says that because he has Trochowski on the right side in the midfield, he feels that he needs to play Guy Demel at right back.  OK, but what about left back? As many readers of this blog may or may not already know, despite all of my travel to Germany, I still speak very little German. So I didn’t catch the last bit in the linked article above about why Jol feels that Boateng can’t play left back, and the phrases used don’t translate well either. Can somebody help a brother out?

•As previously noted, Nigel de Jong and Glass Joe Marcell Jansen (OK-the Glass Joe reference comes from a video game for the original Nintendo Entertainment System, circa 1989. Glass Joe was the first opponent in a game called “Mike Tyson’s Punchout,” and as his name suggests, he was quite frail and easily knocked out. Kinda like Jansen. But I digress. . .) returned to training this week and Jansen is set to go for Saturday’s match at The ‘Bank versus Dortmund. De Jong and the team medical staff will make a decision on his status following Thursday’s training session. I have mentioned that matches versus Dortmund in Hamburg have a special place in my heart, and I am praying that HSV feel the same way. Their record at home in the Bundesliga–4 victories, 1 draw, zero defeats, 9 goals scored and 4 conceded–this year suggests that they should be able to pull it off . . .

•Seems that Frank Rost is tired of getting goals scored on him but that he was largely to blame for 2 of the goals (the first 2) versus Hannover. BUT, he also decries the fact that HSV suffers from a collective loss of focus in road games.

•It seems that Jol is starting to lose patience with Thiago Neves’ lack of progress adjusting to the Bundesliga. Neves has only come on at as late substitute in the matches versus Leverkusen and Köln back in September. Jol says that the Neves he sees right now is not the same Neves he saw in Brazil. Jol points to Alex Silva as an example of what it takes to get into the starting XI.

•Jol discusses the state of the nation in an interview with Bild. He states that he has considered changing his tactics by putting a more defensive player in the midfield, but that there is no one on the bench who could fulfill that role who is more talented than Piotr Trochowski, Mladen Petric or Paolo Guerrero.

He also states that Bastian Reinhardt and Joris Mathijsen had really bad games versus Hannover and Hoffenheim respectively. And he lastly declares that the defense must be more mobile and push forward more. I agree with the first point and COMPLETELY disagree with the second. Regardless, look for Alex Silva to start taking more starts in the central defense, probably for Mathijsen. I’m thinking that Mathijsen may have a case of dead legs, given that he played approximately 50 matches for HSV last season, plus Euro qualifiers for Holland, then Euro matches for Holland, then had a WHOLE month off before the start of the Bundesliga and the UEFA Cup runs.

•Former gaffer Huub Stevens weighs in saying the side is just as good as last season (less VDV) and that HSV has added more talent. He just doesn’t know what the problem is. In the same vein, Jol questions whether the tactic of sending four players forward negatively affects the pressure on the defense, particularly compared to last season when only VDV and Guerrero were going forward.

•And speaking of Van der Vaart, what the hell’s happened in Madrid? Since his hattrick versus Sporting Gijon, Rafa’s been on the bench for the most part. He’s really been getting it in the Spanish sporting papers, particularly following a crucial error in the last La Liga match versus Almeria. We’ll see if he gets in the match tonight versus Juventus.

HSV were never in this one from the get-go. Things started off poorly with Jol’s decision to play Alex Silva at central defense and move Hamburg Offside-favorite Joris Mathijsen to left back–a move with disastrous results. This daft move begs the question: Why start Alex Silva at central defense and move Mathijsen outside, where his lack of speed is a detriment? Why not start Dennis Aogo or Jerome Boateng at left back and leave the invaluable Mathijsen inside where he is one of the best central defenders in Europe (as witneessed by his outstanding performance in the Euro and his tremendous record in the Bundesliga)? Kicker.de asks the same question here. I still cannot figure out what Jerome Boateng has done (or not done) to get himself out of the starting XI. Dude was money last year. . .

Final comments on the Hoffenheim match: I think we’ve seen with Hoffenheim’s complete dismantling of HSV that they are a contender for the league title and are not to be taken lightly. For a newly promoted side, they have played competitive matches versus Bundeliga giants Stuttgart (0:0 draw), Dortmund (4:1 victory), Bremen (5:4 defeat) and Hamburg, with only the 5:2 defeat to Leverkusen the only splotch on an otherwise stellar record. December will make-or-break for Hoffenheim as they play Bayern away and Schalke at home on consecutive weeks. Oh, and HSV were shit.

All parties involved in the debacle for HSV are desperate to put this fiasco behind them as they prepare for a mid-week visit from Vfb Stuttgart. People are not making excuses, either. To a man, when asked by reporters whether Thursday UEFA Cup match away to Zilina had worn them down, those interviewed responded they have been playing in European competition for 3 consecutive seasons and should be conditioned to the number of matches and travel. One point everyone interviewed has made was that following the 3:0 thrashing by Wolfsburg on Matchday 5, HSV went on a three match unbeaten streak and are hopeful confident HSV can go on another such tear.  BUT the two victories in said streak came against relegation strugglers Bundesliga bottom-feeders Cottbus and Monchengladbach. The fixtures list does HSV some favors.  The next 3 Bundesliga matches for Hamburg are: Stuttgart (home), Hannover (away), Dortmund (home). All three matches are entirely winnable. Or so it would seem.

Stuttgart come into Wednesday’s match fresh off a 2-0 away victory over Bochum on a brace by Super Mario Gomez. Stuttgart are winners of 2 of their last 3 matches in the Bundesliga, having victories over Bremen (4:1) and Bochum sandwiched around a loss to Hertha (1:2). Stuttgart have defeated HSV 4 out of the last 5 matches, with Hamburg’s sole victory coming last October at home (4:1). In the last 10 matches between the sides played in Hamburg, HSV have won 7, drawn 1 and lost 2, scoring 23 goals while conceding 14.  

Jan Simak and Yildiray Basturk are on the injury list for the visitors, while HSV continues to have injury woes. Nigel de Jong and Marcell Jansen are out with knee injuries. Thimothee Atouba is gone for the season.  Paolo Guerrero is still out rehabing a calf injury, which now seems to be more serious than first reported. Good news:  Thiago Neves has trained this week and is better than questionable for the match (will likely be available).

Fearless Prediction:

In the spirit of the World Series (of baseball), I’m swinging for the fences and predict a 2:1 HSV victory. Don’t ask me why.

NEWS and NOTES:

•As you may have already heard, La Liga side Valencia are reportedly interested in half of the Crotian Combination–that being Ivica Olic. Olic has repeatedly expressed his desire to finish his career with HSV and he and his family have gone so far as to build a house and make Hamburg their permanent home. HSV had been holding off on negotiating an extension to Olic’s contract (which expires in May 2009) while the manager search was on-going (a la Frank Rost). Now that Jol has been in place for several months and Olic looks to be a large part of the team’s plans this season, talks have stalled. And Olic, who was desperate to get an extension from HSV, is now open to going to another club next season and refuses to discuss the matter any longer with reporters. Yikes. Don’t screw this one up. We’ve locked up Rost and Mathijsen, now we need to lock up another of the team core, Olic. This guy has done absolutely nothing but put his heart and soul into every second of every match he’s played for HSV. Sign him. NOW.

•Speaking of contract extensions, there is a story in the MoPo over the weekend where Dietmar Beiersdorfer states that injured defender Thimothee Atouba will be given a one year contract extension with the same wages he earns under the current deal.

•An insightful interview with Alex Silva following the Hoffenheim match. In the interview, Silva reveals that the whole team were crap in the first half (versus Hoffenheim) and that he is not a scapegoat, despite the fact that he has been on the pitch for both 3:0 defeats this season. The same article tries to get Silva’s reaction to a more permanent move to the midfield (where he played the 2nd half versus Hoffenheim and played pretty well).

•News Tuesday that Jol’s hairbrained experiment with Mathijsen at left back is over and that Dennis Aogo will get this shot. What I really got out of this article was that Jol somehow doesn’t believe that Jerome Boateng posseses the size to play left back. WTF?

The club addressed the loss of goal-scoring production from Rafael van der Vaart by trading for Mladen Petric of Dortmund on 17 August.

They filled the hole in central defense created by Kompany’s departure with Alex Silva of São Paolo.

They attempted to add depth to the defense by going after left back Luciano Monzon of Boca Juniors, and when their target was hijacked by another side, they quickly and decisively switched their focus to another young talent, Marcell Jansen of Bayern.

And finally, they are adding a true number 10, a creative midfielder to fill VDV’s rather sizeable shoes. Hamburg supporters, I give you Thiago Neves of Brazilian side Fluminense. Neves is considered somewhat of a late bloomer by Brazilian standards but does hold the rare distinction of having scored a *hat trick* in a major cup final (the 2008 Copa Libertadores), but his supreme efforts were unable to lift Flum past all-time underdog LDU Quito of Ecuador (one commenter posted that LDU winning the Copa was like a team from Belgium winning the Champions League, it was that big an upset).  Neves also bagged a brace at the Olympics in Brazil’s 3-0 victory over hosts China. He is known for his endurance, his pace and his accurate long passing. What’s not to love? 

This is it folks. HSV have ponied up the dough and are serious about mounting a challenge for the CL next season. Even if we don’t get rid of Atouba (and as much as I don’t like the guy, keeping him makes some sense for the purpose of depth in the back), this is a strong side. To quote Bundesliga Meister Jan:

Hamburg:

-van der Vaart

-Kompany

-Zidan

-Atouba(?)

+Petric

+Alex Silva

+Marcell Jansen

+Thiago Neves

+Jonathon Pitroipa

= Stronger HSV? 

Ja, Jan, I do agree.

Here’s the story from the Bayern’s web site (in English). This presumably kills the deal for Luciano Monzon (or more likely, Betis hijacked Monzon and HSV needed a backup plan), and he is headed to Real Betis, as I reported earlier today.

Here’s a bio of the lad from the English Wikipedia. He will be presented in Hamburg tomorrow (Thursday), 28 August. The transfer fee has so far been undisclosed and Jansen will reportedly sign a new deal with Hamburg through 2013.

OTHER QUICKIES:

•Anis Ben-Hatira has been loaned to Nürnberg. The same story says that Hannover are now after Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting (who is recovering from major knee surgery and has yet to play this season) for a loan spell, but Choupo-Moting and HSV have told Hannover to get lost.

•Simon Braasch of Mopo speculates that prized prospect Macaulay Christantus and Miroslav Stepanek could be loaned out before the transfer window closes Sunday. I don’t know about Stepanek, but I *really* doubt whether HSV will let Christantus go somewhere that they can’t monitor his health and progress, not to mention that the kid has only been in Germany since November 2007 and it’s the first time he’s been away from home. Oh, and there have yet to be any offers for Thimothee Atouba. SIGH.

Reports last week had the Argentine international due into Hamburg following Argentina’s gold medal match versus Nigeria at the Olympic Games. Well, the games have come and gone and Monzon is not in Hamburg. Reports in the last day (or so)–with a big shout out to loyal readers Ahsiq and Juliet for the scoops–indicate that Real Betis are desperately attempting to make a last minute bid for Monzon, while Hamburg and Boca still have not put pen-to-paper.  Boca have an offer of €5.2m from HSV, and Betis surely will have to offer much more than that.

On yesterday’s news that Heerenveen midfielder Michael Bradley was the final transfer target comes news that HSV have made Portsmouth a €10.0m offer for Niko Krancjar. Again, huge thanks to Juliet for pointing out that Krancjar is now injured and out for 3-6 months with torn ligaments in his ankle. Add to that the Pompey have already lost Sulley Muntari and Pedro Mendes this summer and this rumor already smells like last week’s fish. I’m still prayin’ that Bradley is the one they will sign. . .

•Negotiations with Alex Silva, his agent(s) and Sao Paolo are progressing quite slowly. But Silva is quite eager to break the “jinx” that has befallen the other Brazilians to suit up for Die Rothosen.

•There is still another candidate for the midfield “opening”-Hannover’s Hungarian midfielder Szabolcs Huszti. According to Bild.de, Huszti’s agents are working very dilligently to get him out of Hannover before the transfer window closes on Sunday. Huszti bagged 10 goals in 32 appearances for Hannover in the Bundesliga last season.