Jol is more sure about Hamburg chances

Hamburg coach Martin Jol believes his side is well on its way to becoming a serious Bundesliga title candidate, perhaps even this season. “Of course we can win the league,” he said.

“We are still level with second place. We have won eight of our last 11 games, but things could have gone differently. There is a very thin dividing line.”

However, Jol is delighted with the progress his team has made, despite losing high-profile names such as Rafael van der Vaart, Vincent Kompany and Nigel de Jong. Their departures have allowed other players to emerge, such as Piotr Trochowski, David Jarolim and Marcell Jansen, “One thing is that our midfield has become more dangerous in front of goal,” said Jol in an interview with the Bild newspaper.