🤯 16-year-old starts for HSV in top clash! Why Polzin chose him

🤯 16-year-old starts for HSV in top clash! Why Polzin chose him At first glance, it seems like quite a delicate matter: Hamburger SV are heading into the big match in Dortmund with a 16-year-old youngster. Louis Lemke scored in the cup against Verl and will also start on the left side today. Because of a lack of alternatives? That is certainly part of the truth. After all, the Hamburg academy product has only made a single Bundesliga appearance so far. On matchday 33 of last season, at 16 years and 214 days old, he became the youngest Bundesliga player in HSV history. But the fact that there are currently not that many options on the left flank in Hamburg’s squad is truly not the only reason for his inclusion. Coach Merlin Polzin explained his decision before kick-off on ‘Sky’: one of his guiding principles is to reward young players from the academy with minutes on the biggest stage for strong performances. That is something he wants to continue. Afterwards, however, the coach also pointed out that the focus against Dortmund should of course not be only on this individual selection, but on the collective. Kathleen Krüger – HSV’s board member for sport since this summer – also underlined on ‘Sky’ that one of the coaching staff’s great strengths is that the coaches understand the club’s own young players. By the way, at 16 years and 325 days old, Lemke is the second-youngest starting XI player in Bundesliga history; according to ‘Opta’, only Moukoko was younger.  Alongside Lemke, two more HSV gems are involved today. Otto Stange and Shafiq Nandja are also in the squad and will get a taste of the Bundesliga too, even if only from the bench at first. What do you think? Is Lemke ready for the responsibility of a starting spot? Or could it go wrong? Feel free to write it in the comments! This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.