Football Season Guide

Hannover were one of the biggest surprises of last season as they avoided the relegation battle and even qualified for European football for the first time in years. Their fans were naturally delighted with that but they will be aware that a repeat will be a major challenge for them and they will have to play incredibly well to compete that high once more. Remarkably the manager is not 100 per cent safe in his job despite his success having argued with the board on numerous occasions so if a bad start is made, he may come under pressure sooner than many would consider reasonable. Beasley and Forssell will not be missed from the squad while Djakpa and Fromlowitz were more active even if only reserves themselves. In the other column, Sobiech and Radlinger are definitely gambles but Hauger, signed from Norwegian club Stabaek, will hope to follow in the success of Abdellaoue and Ya Konan who did well last season having arrived from the Nordic country. Pander is potentially a good left back but has had his career halted by terrible injury problems and there is no guarantee and will fare much better now. Hannover´s squad is solid and entitled to feel confident about going into the campaign but a good start is crucial if they are to maintain their previous momentum.