Hamburg hero Trochowski hits the heights

There was a look of surprise as much as joy on the face of Hamburger SV matchwinner Piotr Trochowski after he had headed the only goal of his side's UEFA Cup semi-final first leg away to Werder Bremen at the Weserstadion.

Pleasant surprise
At just 1.69m it is not a manner in which the German international is accustomed to scoring, which made it all the sweeter as his header back across the face of goal off Guy Demel's 28th-minute cross gave Hamburg a precious away goal and control of the tie. "It's a long time since I last scored with a header – it was when I was young and played in the youth team," he joked.

Wiese saves
The 25-year-old's smile spoke volumes for an impressive Hamburg performance, and if not for the excellence of Tim Wiese in the Bremen goal Martin Jol's side might have returned home for the second leg next Thursday with more than a one-goal advantage. Twice Wiese saved from Ivica Olić with the Croatia striker through on goal, and Trochowski warned HSV could yet be made to pay for their profligacy.

‘'Not clever enough'
"What we did very well was move the ball forward quickly from the back to the front, but of course we should have scored once or twice more," he said. "We were just not clever enough because we had our chances on the counterattack. Bremen are a very good team, they play good football and we definitely need to play as well as today at home to get through to the final."

Bremen threat
Though the tie is far from over, the result allowed Hamburg to gain a modicum of revenge for their German Cup elimination at the hands of Bremen last week, the first game in a four-match series between the northern rivals which concludes in the Bundesliga on 10 May. Trochowski took heart with the improvement his side had shown compared with last Wednesday. "We played better in the first half than last week, but Bremen are still a very strong team especially in midfield where they move the ball quickly," he said. "Their forwards [Claudio] Pizarro and [Hugo] Almeida are very strong as well especially in the air."

Hertha test
Before the second leg, Hamburg host fellow title-chasers Hertha BSC Berlin in the Bundesliga on Sunday. Fifth but only three points off leaders VfL Wolfsburg, Hamburg have their sights set on a first title since 1983 and Trochowski is determined not to let their domestic challenge falter. "We have a very hard game now against Berlin but because Wolfsburg lost last week against Cottbus we have an unexpected chance again," he said. "If we beat Berlin at the weekend we should be able to get to the top."