Northern giants feel the pressure

Hamburger SV and Werder Bremen meet on Saturday with northern Germany's two footballing powerhouses striving to emerge from an early-season crisis.

High stakes
The stakes are high for the UEFA Champions League hopefuls at the Arena Hamburg as each attempts to get their title campaign back on track following disappointing starts. Bremen have won two and lost two of their four Bundesliga matches, while Hamburg are yet to win although they have picked up three draws. "The situation is not easy for us but we will try to keep our spirits up," said Hamburg coach Thomas Doll.

Wake-up call
The 1983 European champions were also beaten 2-1 at home by Arsenal FC in their opening UEFA Champions League game and were eliminated from the German Cup first round at the hands of third division SV Stuttgarter Kickers. With one of the championship favourites sitting just one place above the relegation zone, Doll added: "My team have to start playing now. We must wake up. I want to see a team that works together."

Youthful side
After soaring to the upper echelons of the Bundesliga following years in the doldrums, Hamburg's return to prominence has been halted somewhat by the departure of four key players. Daniel Van Buyten, Khalid Bouhlarouz, Stefan Beinlich and Sergej Barbarez all moved on this summer to leave a youthful side looking short on experience. "We have a young team who have not had much time to get to know each other," said Doll. "We need time to grow."

Sorin return
Time, though, is a rare commodity in modern football and Doll's cause has not been helped by the fact that Dutch playmaker Rafael van der Vaart is likely to be sidelined for at least another month with a tendon injury. On a brighter note, Juan Pablo Sorín should finally make his debut against Bremen after recovering from a calf problem. The Argentina captain said: "We were hoping the start of the season was going to be different. Now we want to turn the tide with a home victory."

Bremen slump
Their chances of returning to winning ways may have been boosted by the form of Bremen, who have had a similarly indifferent opening to the campaign. Thomas Schaaf's men have suffered two Bundesliga defeats, a UEFA Champions League loss to an English club - 2-0 at Chelsea FC - and a German Cup exit to a third division team, in their case FK Pirmasens.

'Gears'
Torsten Frings and Tim Borowski appear to be feeling the effects of their FIFA World Cup travails while their most celebrated Germany star, Miroslav Klose, has been blighted by ankle trouble. "We must step up through the gears," said Borowski, echoing the mood from the opposite corner of northern Germany.