Bobby Wood has proven he's a Bundesliga striker, even if HSV aren't a Bundesliga team
Bobby Wood scored again. Hamburg lost again.
This is becoming the norm in the northern German port city. Their American striker has shown no issues making the jump from the 2.Bundesliga to the top flight, but his team look unfit for the Bundesliga and are locked in for a tough relegation fight.
Losing undoubtedly doesn't sit well with Wood. The 24-year-old joined Hamburg from Union Berlin and didn't expect to be in 16th place, which would put them in a playoff for the first division spot. But he has to be pleased with how he's played individually.
Wood has five goals this season in 14 matches, a perfectly respectable output for any striker, but especially impressive for one who is playing at this level for the first time. It stands out even more when the entire team has just 17 goals on the season and an embarrassingly low number of chances created.
It often takes something special for Hamburg to score, and that was the case when Wood found the back of the net on Saturday.
The interplay isn't bad, and Wood was involved in it from the start, but it still only leads to Wood having the ball 20 yards from goal with no forward options to pass and nothing on the wings. His options are shoot or go backward. That's not ideal from that position, to say the least, but it's the norm for Wood.
Still, Wood scores. He hits a bullet to the near post to give Hamburg an early lead they didn't deserve.
That "didn't deserve" part came back to them in the rest of the match as they conceded three times to suffer another loss, but it wasn't Wood's fault. He continued to work hard up front and helped set up a teammate for another chance. That on top of giving Hamburg their early lead from nothing.
It's very much possible that Hamburg are relegated after the season. If they do it will be a sad day in the city and a sad day for Wood, whose only Bundesliga experience would have concluded with his team's relegation. But Wood wouldn't have to fear of ending up back in the second division. Even if Hamburg go down, Wood will find a new home in the top flight. He's proven himself to be a quality Bundesliga striker, and he won't be short on options.
