Hamburg coach Bruno Labbadia insists he is not going to sign emergency replacements for his forward line.
Hamburg coach rules out emergency striker signings
Hamburg coach Bruno Labbadia insists he is not going to sign any new strikers after injuries to Mladen Petric and Paolo Guerrero.
Guerrero sustained torn cruciate knee ligaments while on international duty with Peru last month, while Croatia international Petric suffered an ankle injury in the 3-1 victory over Hertha Berlin last weekend.
The pair are expected to be out for several months but Labbadia insists the Bundesliga high-fliers will not be signing any emergency replacements.
He told
Rheinische Post: "I would rule that out at this point of time.
Big faith
"We would have to sign a player out of any practice for four months now and I definitely do not think one that has been out of action would be of great help for us actually.
"I have a big faith in the team, we have already overcome the absence of Guerrero and I believe we have the chance to do the same now with Mladen's injury.
"I regard this as a test."
Petric is set to be out until the new year after tests revealed he required an ankle operation, which he has now had.
Bitter blow
Labbadia told the club's
official website: "Naturally it is a bitter blow for us. I hope Mladen will return as soon as possible.
"We will have to come up with a solution to this problem over the coming weeks."
Before his injury, the club had stopped talking to Petric about a new contract, although Hamburg chairman Bernd Hoffmann said it was only a temporary situation and there had not been a fall-out.
