HSV v. Hapoel Preview

By: Chris | October 1st, 2009

News and notes leading up to the Europa League clash with Hapoel Tel Aviv on Thursday. . .

•Paolo Guerrero had surgery in my hometown of Denver (Colorado) this week under the skilled knife of Dr. Richard Steadman (actually, Steadman’s clinic is in the alpine resort town of Vail, but hey, who’s keeping track . . .), and the prognosis for his return to the pitch is about 4 months. That, my friends, puts him back in the starting XI by February. Sweet.

•Ze Roberto continues to rehab a bruised ankle and is, in American football parlance, questionable for tonight’s match. If he doesn’t go, look for a midfield of Trochowski, Aogo, Jarolim, and Elia. Guy Demel left the Bayern match with a bruised ankle, after a deliberate (and uncalled) foul by Frank Ribery in the first half. But our man Guy has made a miraculous recovery and was able to train both Tuesday and Wednesday. Look for him to take the pitch at Right Back.

•Talks with in-form striker Mladen Petric regarding a contract extension have broken down. Rumors to that effect last week led to every scout from every “major” (Read: Rich) club in Europe watching Petric versus Bayern. Petric, for his part, says he is disappointed.

•There will be a familiar face to Bundesliga fans in the starting XI for Tel Aviv tonight: Former 1860 Munich and Köln/Cologne midfielder Nemanja Vucicevic signed with Tel Aviv this summer.

Where'd everybody go?

•Only 27,000 tickets had been sold to tonight’s match as of this morning, meaning there will be a LOT of HSV supporters in attendance dressed like empty seats. Everyone at HSV has pointed to this match as a must win, and are pleading with supporters to buy tickets to the match this evening.

•Great story here about the background of Hapoel Tel Aviv, their relationship to Hamburg’s “other” club, FC St. Pauli, and their rivalry with larger local rival Maccabi Tel Aviv. Some 700 Hapoel supporters are expected to attend tonight, along with 200 of their comrades from St. Pauli’s goons Ultras.

Let’s not beat around the bush. The Bayern win was a rousing as the defeat to Rapid was crushing. We need to win tonight to have any hope of advancing to the group stage. With a trip to Celtic Park looming, we need a full three points and no away goals to Hapoel tonight. Remember, this is the same Hapoel who went into Celtic Park and punked Celtic 1:2 on Matchday 1.

One hacks attempt at a starting XI:

Rost

Demel Boateng Mathijsen Aogo

Ze Roberto Jarolim

Trochowski Elia

Petric Berg

SWAG Prediction–2:1 HSV, goals by Elia and Boateng (a really swing for the fences [baseball term], I’ll admit, but he had a hell of a shot in Sunday’s match and I think he’s due).