Another relegation thriller in the Hanse town. Hamburger SV will face promoted SV Darmstadt and the Bundesliga Dino could secure their top-flight status a win over Darmstadt. On the other hand, Darmstadt could take a big step forward in direction to the staying up with three points.
Roller coaster ride HSV
Bruno Labbadia's team is not only on a roller coaster ride in terms of form, things have been up and down throughout the entire season. With a great Hinrunde behind them this term, the Dino was on a good path to ensuring the stayed up early on, but a poor second half of the season has left fans holding their breath.
Three losses in the last five matches were crucial. A 0-1 against Bayer Leverkusen, a 2-3 against Schalke 04 and a 1-3 against the struggling TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
But aside from these losses, Hamburg also won twice against Hertha and Hannover - which was massive for the table. A win against Darmstadt could mean safety is secured and the Dino will not make it a hat-trick of appearances in the relegation play-off, having previous faced off against Greuther Fürth and Karlsruher SC.
The match in the first half of the season finished with a 1-1 draw in the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor. Pierre-Michel Lasogga scored with a penalty to open the scoring for the guests, but Marcel Heller equalised and earned his team a point.
In the press conference, coach Labbadia set a clear pathway for this match and said: "We respect Darmstadt who are tough to beat. We face 90 minutes of really hard work. We must take the initiative and play to our own strengths."
He added, "We trust our own strengths and are more than keen to take maximum points from the game in order to better our tally."
Fighting Darmstädter
Dirk Schuster's SV Darmstadt have only two points advantage on the relegation places and need to take any and all points that come their way. The team haven't won in their last eight matches, but have managed five draws. The upcoming matches in the final phase of the season are going to be tough. Besides HSV, Darmstadt will play against Ingolstadt, Köln, Frankfurt, Hertha and Mönchengladbach; a tough run in.
The 48-year-old coach of the Lilien is in fighting mood and said: "We come to Hamburg to get a win there. We also want to go one better and score in the Hanse town."