Hamburg’s stunning Bundesliga upset of VfB Stuttgart on Sunday afternoon came gift-wrapped with its fair share of storylines. Merlin Polzin’s Hamburger SV managed to defeat their Swabian guests via a dramatic late winner despite being down a man. The 2-1 victory would not have been possible without fairy-tale-like tallies from Robert Glatzel and Fabio Vieira.
In the case of Glatzel, the 31-year-old was handed his first Bundesliga start in well over four years. Glatzel last featured in the German top flight for Mainz 05 at the tail end of the 2020/21 campaign. After moving to Hamburg, Glatzel proceeded to dominate the 2. Bundesliga scoring charts for three years. The only season during which Glatzel did not factor into the race for the golden boot in the second division was last year.
Many wondered why Glatzel, despite interest from German top division sides, never opted to return to the top flight. Polzin’s decision not to turn to Glatzel despite persistent issues surrounding new skipper Yussuf Poulsen (injury) and slumping starter Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer (form). While such questions may not have been fully answered against Stuttgart, Glatzel made a huge statement in his first start of the season.
Glatzel came close to scoring on several occasions before some fine set-up work from young Norwegian talent Alexander Røssing-Lelesiit helped him net the 1-0 in the 17th. It was Glatzel’s first Bundesliga goal since March 2021. After Røssing-Lelesiit found himself sent off on double yellows with the score tied at 1-1 in the 82nd-minute, Vieira (somewhat maligned after his recent suspension) scored the 90+6 winner off the bench.
“This was a very special evening with many small lovely niche stories,” Polzin remarked at the post-match press conference. “I hope we can carry forth this momentum into what will be a special week for us [with northern derbies against Holstein Kiel in the cup and Werder Bremen in the league next weekend].
“When I see the team joining in the goal celebrations, it means a lot to me,” Polzin continued. “It shows me that everyone here is pulling in the same direction.”
