After a somewhat mediocre start, with two-thirds of the Bundesliga season now played, HSV's have redressed the balance and with 22 points now sit in lower mid-table. Their greatest consistency still, however, seems to be in their consistency.

Particularly striking is the discrepancy between their strong performances at the Volksparkstadion and a significantly weaker away record, which has dogged HSV's season. The 'Rothosen' have collected ten more points at home than away.

Hope for an intense game comes from the fact that HSV, founded in 1887, will compete in its 1887th Bundesliga match on Saturday. 

The teams have faced each other only three times so far, making this the lowest number of encounters among current Bundesliga teams. In those meetings, Union have won once, while the other two ended in draws - including the last encounter at the Volksparkstadion in 2018.

For head coach Steffen Baumgart and assistant coach Kevin McKenna, the away game against the Hanseatic team is a return to an old stomping ground. The two were on the Hamburg touchlines together for 27 competitive matches before moving to Union.

During this time, Matheo Raab was also part of the squad. Between 2022 and 2025, the goalkeeper played 22 competitive matches for HSV keeping a clean sheet five times. Half a year after the coaching change, Raab finally joined Union as well.

Derrick Köhn also has a past in the port city. The native Hamburger was trained at HSV and left the club after his time in the U19s to continue his career with the second team of Bayern.

Tom Rothe, Robert Skov, Diogo Leite, and Josip Juranović will not be available for selection on Saturday

“We are going to Hamburg with a clear plan and are confident that we have the quality to implement it," said Union head coach, Steffen Baumgart, during his press conference on Thursday afternoon. "HSV have found their way back into The Bundesliga after a major overhaul and are particularly characterised by their strong transitional play. We need to pay particular attention to this. Avoid losing the ball unnecessarily to stop them from utilising their strengths, with the aim of coming off the pitch as winners in the end.”

“Union stand very clearly for a certain style of football. We will need a lot of patience to deal with a compact opponent. It has been evident in recent weeks, as Eintracht Frankfurt, blessed with much attacking strength, also struggled to create chances against them,” stated HSV co-coach Loïc Favé.

5,800 Unioner will travel to the Volksparkstadion. The Union-Fahr-Zeughaus will also be on site. Information about visiting the stadium can be found here.