Football
Stephan Uersfeld, Germany correspondent 9y

Ruud van Nistelrooy hoping Hamburg continue Bundesliga run vs. Stuttgart

Hamburg will be hoping Ruud van Nistelrooy can be their good luck charm on Tuesday, with the former Manchester United attacker in the stands to witness the club's last home match of the year against Stuttgart.

Van Nistelrooy, 38, is currently studying for his coaching badges and is on a two-day sit-in with his former club. The retired attacker played for Hamburg for 18 months at the beginning of the decade and scored a total of 12 goals in 36 Bundesliga appearances.

The first two came in Hamburg's 3-1 win at Stuttgart in February 2010, coming off the bench with the game tied at 1-1 and needing just 25 minutes to score his first of two braces for the club. He was also on target when the Dinosaurs last beat the 2007 Bundesliga champions at home later that year.

The struggling club have since collected two defeats and one draw against Stuttgart, who currently sit bottom of the table.

"It's nice to be here and meet so many old acquaintances," the former Old Trafford and Real Madrid star told reporters at the side of the pregame news conference.

"HSV is still a very impressive club. We have to make sure that we pull clear of the lower places in the table. I hope we can make it four home wins in a row.

The former forward conceded there is nothing he can contribute, adding. "No I don't think I will be able to give them any tips to help them go out and score four or five goals. If I could, I could start coaching right away."

Three consecutive home wins and a 0-0 draw at Freiburg at the weekend have taken Hamburg three points clears of Stuttgart, who remain bottom-of-the-league with 13 points. HSV coach Josef Zinnbauer added that Tuesday's match will be "a real six-pointer."

Joining Zinnbauer on the sidelines of the former Volksparkstadion will be Huub Stevens. The Dutch coach is currently on his second stint at Stuttgart, and also briefly oversaw Hamburg's fortunes for 16 months from February 2007 to June 2008.

Stevens, 61, told his pregame news conference on Monday that Stuttgart will fight against the drop, although hinted that his side -- and the officials -- will need to be wary of their Hamburg's physicality: "I think that we need to be prepared for their aggressive fashion in which they have played their home games. We all need to do that; not only us but also the referee."

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