BLBL2VBL
menu
Hamburger SV captain Rafael van der Vaart returned to training this week ahead of his side's Matchday 5 fixture against Borussia Dortmund
Hamburger SV captain Rafael van der Vaart returned to training this week ahead of his side's Matchday 5 fixture against Borussia Dortmund

Van der Vaart fighting to be fit for Dortmund

xwhatsappmailcopy-link

Hamburg - Hamburger SV captain Rafael van der Vaart took part in a training match on Wednesday and rejoined first-team training in full on Thursday.

'Important experience'

"I felt good. The training game was important and went well, and I'll be training with the team as normal again. If everything progresses smoothly, hopefully I'll play at the weekend [against Borussia Dortmund]" said the 30-year-old.

Coach Thorsten Fink was slightly more cautious and said fans would have "to wait and see" whether van der Vaart would be fit for the Dortmund clash, but did concede that "his experience could be very useful" at the Signal Iduna Park on Saturday evening, "we'll do everything we can to get him fit".

Van der Vaart picked up a minor thigh strain while training with the Dutch national side in Katwijk last week. Marcell Jansen is also back training with the team, and hopeful of being involved versus last season's runners-up.