Niko Kovic has urged his Borussia Dortmund players to quickly put the defeat at Manchester City behind them as they prepare to face Hamburg on Saturday.
Dortmund suffered only their second defeat of the season on Wednesday, losing 4-1 to the Premier League side at the Etihad Stadium in the Champions League.
Kovac’s side could move up to second place ahead of the international break, and the head coach has enjoyed his previous encounters with Hamburg.
He has played more Bundesliga games without a single defeat against Hamburg than against any other current Bundesliga team. He won one and drew three.
And as a player, Kovac scored twelve goals in 55 Bundesliga appearances for the Red Shorts, more than for any other club.
After their heavy defeat in Manchester, Kovac is determined to start the November international break on a good note.
“[We must] put quickly [it] behind us,” Kovac said at his pre-match press conference.
“[It] can help us too. We want to develop further and have to measure ourselves against the best. We are good, but we have to keep improving.
“Personally, I know the atmosphere in the Volkspark well.
“Tomorrow we want to secure a victory before the international break, to not only have three points but also a good feeling for the days after.”
Disappointing tonight. We regroup, reset and go again on the weekend.
As always, your support has been incredible. Safe journey home and see you in Hamburg. pic.twitter.com/ZyhMi22YH5
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) November 5, 2025
Since their 4-0 win against Mainz on October 5, Hamburg have lost each of their last three Bundesliga matches.
They are 13th in the table, just two points above Borussia Mönchengladbach, 16th.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Hamburg – Ryan Philippe
Rayan Philippe has been Hamburg’s biggest threat this season, scoring three goals in nine league games so far.
However, the Frenchman has failed to find the back of the net since the 4-0 win over Mainz, scoring twice.
Borussia Dortmund-Serhou Guirassy
Serhou Guirassy scored the opening goal on the last matchday for the fourth time this Bundesliga season – the most in the competition.
In the 2022/23 Bundesliga relegation play-offs, Guirassy contributed a goal or assist in both legs for Stuttgart against Hamburg (one goal, one assist), but has never scored against HSV in the top flight.
MATCH PREDICTION – BORUSSIA DORTMUND WIN
Dortmund have lost just one of their last seventeen Bundesliga games: a 1-2 defeat to Bayern Munich on October 18 (along with thirteen wins and three draws).
Bayern are also the only team in Europe’s five major leagues to have suffered fewer defeats (zero) than Dortmund (one) since the end of March.
Dortmund have also kept six clean sheets in the league this season, a joint record with Bayern and surpassed in Europe’s five major leagues only by Arsenal (seven), just one short of their total from last season.
Hamburg have suffered more defeats in their last three games (three) than in their first six Bundesliga games of the season combined (two). Besides the Red Shorts, only city rival St. Pauli failed to score points in the past three games.
Hamburg have lost each of their last five league matches against Dortmund, marking their longest losing streak against BVB since the inception of the Bundesliga (1963).
OPTA CHANCE OF WINNING
Hamburg – 23.8%
Draw – 23%
Borussia Dortmund – 53.2%
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