Hamburger SV finished in a credible seventh position in the Bundesliga table though coach Thorsten Fink will be disappointed that his side was unable to secure European qualification on the last day of the season. After finishing just above the relegation zone last season, Hamburg spent big in the summer transfer window, bringing in Rafael van der Vaart, Milan Badelj, Petr Jiracek, Rene Adler and Anton Rudnevs but the season started on a disappointing note as they lost their opening three games. A shock win over Borussia Dortmund saw Hamburg hit a green patch of form and climb up the league table. While Jiracek spent much of the season on the treatment table, the rest of the new signings clicked for Hamburg with van der Vaart turning into the creative outlet for the side. Hamburg provided more of an attacking threat with the Dutch international in the side as he built up a great partnership with Rudnevs and Heung-Min Son. However they struggled with inconsistency and three defeats in a row to Augsburg, Bayern Munchen and SC Freiburg looked to have ended their European dreams. With Stuttgart securing qualification to the DFB Cup final, Hamburg needed to finish at least sixth in the league table and did manage rally in the end, collecting 10 points from their final six games but it was too little too late as both Freiburg and Eintracht Frankfurt tightened their hold on to the two remaining European qualification spots to leave Hamburg empty handed. While no major departures are expected in the summer, Fink will be hopeful that they can hold on to Son who has been linked with some of the biggest clubs in Europe, including domestic rivals Dortmund.
