Jol sees nothing but good times ahead

Through to the UEFA Cup quarter-finals and level with VfL Wolfsburg at the Bundesliga summit, Hamburger SV coach Martin Jol told uefa.com that "something significant is developing" at the club as they gear up to take on Manchester City FC on Thursday.

Bayern stumble
HSV were a real force for a decade between 1976 and 1987. Three Bundesliga titles, two German Cups, the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the pinnacle, the 1982/83 European Champion Clubs' Cup, represented an impressive haul. Save for the 2003 League Cup they have no major titles to their name since the halycon period ended, yet the good times may be returning to the Hanseatic city. Jonathan Pitroipa's 28th-minute strike was enough to earn victory at home to TSG 1899 Hoffenheim on Saturday and send Hamburg joint-top with eight league games remaining. "This season has not been typical because Bayern München have shown weakness," said Jol. "It has opened the door for others and there are six sides in with a chance of claiming the title. We are one of them."

Player turnover
League honours would be some achievement for a side that have steadily lost their leading lights over the past few years, with Rafael van der Vaart, Daniel Van Buyten and Khalid Boulahrouz all leaving in search of new challenges. Vincent Kompany and Nigel de Jong fit into that category after deciding to join Thursday's opponents Manchester City over the past 12 months, but Jol wonders whether some would have been better staying put. "I'm not sure if it's always good to leave Hamburg," said the Dutchman, whose striker Ivica Olić will join Bayern in the summer. "A few players have done so in the past because they thought they were moving to a bigger club, but maybe they never had it better than at Hamburg. Something significant is developing here."

City admiration
That could be bad news for City, for whom the UEFA Cup represents their last real chance to make a mark this season after failing to live up to expectations in the Premier League. "Manchester City are a very good team," warned Jol, who knows all about the Blues from his three-season spell at the Tottenham Hotspur FC helm between 2004 and 2007, winning all six meetings with the Manchester side. "They have excellent players: Robinho, Shaun Wright-Philips, and Shay Given is one of the best goalkeepers in England. Then there is Pablo Zabaleta and Stephen Ireland – I could go on. And though their league position doesn't indicate it, Manchester City are one of the six best teams in England."

Injury problems
Indeed, a 2-0 weekend defeat by Arsenal FC left City tenth in the Premier League, their disappointment compounded by an injury to Kompany that leaves the defender doubtful for the first leg in Germany. Hamburg have problems of their own, with Collin Benjamin and Paolo Guerrero the latest additions to a treatment room that has been busy all season. "We have been fighting personnel problems all campaign," admitted Jol. "It's fantastic how the team have dealt with those problems until now. We have a very good mentality, even if the odd loss this term was avoidable. The team's character is very good, but I don't know if it will be enough in the end."