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Since Monday, no longer an assistant, but head coach: Merlin Polzin

Photo: Joern Pollex / Getty Images

Hamburger SV drew in their first game under head coach Merlin Polzin. On the 22nd matchday of the 2nd Bundesliga, Hansa Rostock and HSV drew 2-2 (0-1). FC Schalke 04 scored important points against Wehen Wiesbaden with a 1-0 (0-0), Holstein Kiel won 4-0 (2-0) at SC Paderborn. The game had to be interrupted for a long time due to fan protests and the game was threatened to be abandoned.

Last Monday, HSV released Tim Walter after more than two and a half exciting but inconsistent years. His former assistant Polzin took over on an interim basis and was able to celebrate an individual action in the first half. The ball landed somewhat luckily at Jean-Luc Dompé on the left edge of the penalty area. The 28-year-old started dribbling against three Rostock players, put the ball past his opponent and then with the tip of his foot into the far corner (34th minute).

In the second half, HSV had a promising opportunity to make it 2-0, but had to accept the equalizer in return. Rostock's Svante Ingelsson crossed from the baseline into the middle, where Juan José Perea headed in undisturbed (50'). After the 1-1 draw, Hansa even sensed a chance of winning, played courageously forward and was rewarded: Hamburg's Ransford Königsdörffer wanted to pass back to his own goalkeeper, but Sveinn Aron Gudjohnsen intercepted the pass and gave Hansa the lead (82'). . Shortly before the end, Robert Glatzel pushed a cross over the line to make the final score 2-2 (86th).

Schalke in 14th place, Wiesbaden in 13th place. – for both clubs it was about collecting important points against a direct competitor. But the fear of being pushed into the relegation battle by a defeat seemed to determine the first round. We went into the half-time break with few chances and no goals. After a good hour, Kenan Karaman finally converted a penalty for Schalke (60th). Darko Čurlinov had previously been fouled while taking a shot.

With a confident victory, Holstein Kiel consolidated its second place in the table. In the 16th minute, Shuto Machino put the ball with his chest into the path of Finn Porath, who shot with a full shot from close range. The shot bounced off the inside post and into the net (16th). Kiel remained the better team and extended their lead when Lewis Holtby sent Steven Skrzybski with a through ball behind the opposing back four. Skrzybski evaded the defenders and hit the goal over Paderborn's goalkeeper (33').

Shortly after the break, the Kiel team won the ball on the halfway line, midfielder Marvin Schulz picked up the pace, was unstoppable and made it 3-0 (52nd). In between, the game had to be interrupted for around 30 minutes and the referee sent the teams to the dressing room. The fans protested against the planned investor entry into the German Football League by throwing tennis balls onto the grass. As things continued, the afternoon became even more bitter for Paderborn: Martin Ens was shown a red card for kicking his opponent in the face (90.+1), 19-year-old Kieler Niklas Niefhoff rounded it off with his first second division goal (90 .+10).

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