Hamburg coach Markus Gisdol has defended U.S. forward Bobby Wood after he was criticised for his performance in the home defeat to bottom-placed Darmastadt.
Wood failed to make an impression during the 2-1 loss and was given a score of six by kicker -- the lowest in the German football magazine's ratings system.
But Gisdol backed the 24-year-old, who has been linked with Borussia Dortmund after some impressive performances this season.
He said transfer speculation was "immaterial" and that the minor knee injury that caused Wood to miss Hamburg's recent game at Bremen had been a factor.