HSV match reaction

Markus Gisdol: We were excellent today. The penalty and red card obviously helped us but it was still a difficult game. HSV defended well with ten men and looked dangerous on the counter. We controlled the game, maintained possession and didn't bomb forward without considering our defensive duties. The only time Hamburg really posed a threat was from set pieces. The second goal was good for us but it would have been nice to have doubled our advantage earlier on, as the visitors had opportunities to equalise from corners and free kicks. I'm delighted that we won.

Josef Zinnbauer: Hoffenheim put us under a lot of pressure in the first 15 minutes. They started quickly and we struggled to deal with them. However, they didn't carve out any real chances. The penalty knocked us out of our stride a little, although we did appear to concentrate more and play better as a unit afterwards. We were in control defensively up to a certain point and posed a threat from set pieces. With a little bit of luck, we could have scored. However, there's no doubt that TSG were superior.

Eugen Polanski: It's obviously fantastic to score two goals. I grabbed the ball for the penalty as I felt confident and Sali wasn't on the pitch. We worked well together as a team – that was the key to our success.

Sven Schipplock: The penalty and sending-off obviously played into our hands. From my perspective, it was a no-brainer. I took the ball past him and he brought me down. It was a great team performance, rewarded with a convincing win.

Kevin Volland: We deserved to win. The goals came at just the right time. The team put in a solid performance.

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