Hamburg – Darmstadt

The hosts without their head coach will not be able to beat a strong opponent

The history of Hamburg in recent years is known almost all over Europe, although it takes place in the second division of German football. For the sixth year in a row, Hamburg has unconcealed ambitions to return to the Bundesliga, but previous attempts ended either in the final fourth place, or in third place with a subsequent defeat in the knockout rounds. Last week, the Dinosaurs said goodbye to their fifth coach this term. This time it was Stefen Baumgart who couldn't handle the burden of responsibility. Merlin Polzin, a native of Hamburg, took over as acting coach, just as he did after his resignation last week. It is not yet known whether the 34-year-old will continue in the role of number one of the coaching staff or prepare the ground for the next coach, but the positive changes in the team's game have already manifested themselves. Darmstadt 98 is one of the most dangerous representatives of the Second Bundesliga. After dropping out of the elite division without a chance at the end of last season, the Lilies continued to demonstrate a low level of play in the league below, but later adapted to the new realities and made a decent leap up the standings. Bookmakers have identified the home team as the favourites for the upcoming meeting, offering odds of 1.93 on their victory. Hamburg started the current season well. Until October, almost nothing foreshadowed the situation that eventually developed with Baumgart. However, at the end of that month and until the last meeting in November, Hamburg went through a crisis that culminated in the resignation of the head coach. Under the leadership of the acting Polzin, the team played one match - on the first day of December. In Karlsruhe, Hamburg broke a four-match winless streak with a 3-1 victory, which allowed them to move up to the second position in the extremely tight standings. Darmstadt 98, after a successful streak of four wins and two draws, sit in eleventh position. However, the gap from the upcoming opponent is only three points. Over the last couple of months, the Lilies have beaten Cologne, Hannover, Hertha and Greuther Fürth, so they won't be worried in Hamburg. We bet that the guests will take home at least one point.