Hamburg hope for Toppmöller

By Manfred Christoph

A week after returning to Bundesliga football with Hamburger SV, coach Klaus Toppmöller is back in his element. The man who took Bayer 04 Leverkusen to the final of the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League may have had a disappointing start with a 2-2 draw against FC Schalke 04 last weekend, but you won't find him complaining.

Fourth post
Hamburg are the coach's fourth Bundesliga club following spells at Eintracht Frankurt, VfL Bochum 1848 and Leverkusen, where he reached the finals of the Champions League and German Cup and came within an ace of taking the Bundesliga title in the same season before being dismissed last February.

Gardening leave
Since then, the 52-year-old has been considering his options. Linked with jobs at Chelsea FC, FC Barcelona, Fulham FC and VfL Borussia Mönchengladbach, Toppmöller spent most of his time in the Mosel village, Rivenich, where he runs a pub.

Hamburg job
"I listened to some clubs, but when the offer from Hamburg came, it went 'click' instantly," he said. "I thought, 'Great stadium, great fans, great city - you can do something here'. That was not the case with all the other clubs."

Poor start
The only team in the Bundesliga never to have been relegated, Hamburg had made a poor start to the season under Toppmöller's predecessor Kurt Jara, sliding towards the foot of the table with two wins from their first nine games. The new coach immediately set about shuffling his pack.

Squad changes
For the Schalke match, he made three changes. Stefan Wächer deputised for the injured Martin Pieckenhagen in goal; Nico Jan Hoogma returned from injury to replace Bastian Reinhardt in defence; and Christian Rahn took Lars Jacobsen's place in midfield. However, the real changes need to come from within.

Individual effort
"Names are not important - what counts is work," said Toppmöller. "Everyone will get a fair chance. We want to get away from the bottom and achieve a place in mid-table. There is no point discussing targets for us to chase, but the team can do a lot better."

Defensive frailty
Certainly, Toppmöller is keen to tighten a defence that has now conceded 21 goals in ten games. "Twenty-one goals is too many - something has to happen in this respect," said the former German international centre-forward who played 204 Bundesliga matches for 1. FC Kaiserslautern.

Modest aims
For the moment, the popular coach is keeping his feet on the ground. "The team has potential, but it is not mature enough yet for a title," he added. "I want to get the best out of them and play good football."

Big dream
However, he does not lack ambition. "Hamburg are a Bundesliga giant who have fallen below expectations as far as the championship is concerned," he said. "I have high aims. In the long run we want to get back to the glory days of Uwe Seeler. I will breathe new life into the team and do all that I can."

Success counts
The Bundesliga is a tough division, and while he has sympathy for his predecessor Jara, Toppmöller knows from bitter experience the price of failure. "When you take the coaching licence you know what you are getting into," he said. "The job is based on success. Whoever is not successful has to go."

Happy ending
However, as he grips the reins at Hamburg, many in Europe will be hoping that this time Toppmöller's story will have a happy ending.