Kaspar Hjulmand says nobody at Bayer Leverkusen is panicking following their chastening 4-1 defeat to Stuttgart, with Tuesday's trip to Hamburg on the horizon.
Leverkusen shipped four goals in the first half on Saturday, with Jamie Leweling scoring twice and Deniz Undav getting three goal involvements (two goals, two assists).
It was Leverkusen's heaviest defeat since they were routed 7-2 by Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League in October, and a league-high 36 goals have now been scored in the first half of their Bundesliga matches this season.
Leverkusen are still fourth in the Bundesliga but are only ahead of fifth-placed Stuttgart on goal difference, with Hoffenheim and Eintracht Frankfurt also within three points of them as the battle for European qualification heats up.
Their next opponents, HSV, meanwhile, are 13th in the table and four points clear of the relegation play-off spot.
"We're not panicking," Hjulmand said at Monday's pre-match press conference. "Sometimes there are simply setbacks, that's all part of it.
"We remain calm, are optimistic and feel good. The players know what to do.
"Of course, we've analysed the Stuttgart game and looked at our shape in one-v-ones and duels. We know we absolutely have to do better against HSV. That's our full focus now."
Leverkusen could have Christian Kofane and Ibrahim Maza available after Cameroon and Algeria were both eliminated from the Africa Cup of Nations, but Hjulmand will check on their conditions ahead of the game.
"We have to see how they feel. I know how much pressure national teams are under at a tournament like this," the former Denmark boss said.
"It's important for me to talk to them and see them on the pitch to assess how ready they are."
HSV have 16 points after 16 matchdays, one more than they had at the same stage of their last Bundesliga season in 2017-18 (15).
Only once in their last five Bundesliga campaigns have HSV collected more points at this stage of the competition – winning 22 points from 16 games in 2015-16.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Hamburger SV – Luka Vuskovic
Vuskovic scored HSV's first goal from a corner in the 2025-26 Bundesliga during Saturday's 2-1 loss to Freiburg, as they became the final team in the German top-flight to do so this season.
The 18-year-old is the second-youngest player in this Bundesliga campaign with at least three goals, behind Bayern Munich star Lennart Karl (17 years old).
Bayer Leverkusen – Alejandro Grimaldo
Grimaldo matched his goal involvement tally from the entire previous Bundesliga season (two goals, seven assists) last weekend, registering his ninth Bundesliga goal contribution of the season (five goals, four assists).
The left-back is also the Werkself's leader for goal involvements across all competitions this season (15 – 10 goals, five assists), ahead of Patrik Schick (11 goal contributions).