Hamburg snub Hornets bid

Ben-Hatira: Staying at Hamburg

Hamburg turned down a loan approach from Watford for winger Anis Ben-Hatira, general manager Bastian Reinhardt has confirmed.

Ben-Hatira, who joined the Bundesliga club three years ago and is contracted until June 2012, spent the last 18 months on loan at German second-tier outfit MSV Duisburg.

The 22-year-old was invited for a trial period at West Ham this summer and had appeared likely to depart the Imtech Arena before the transfer deadline.

But Reinhardt has revealed the Bundesliga club rejected the offer of a six-month loan deal for the youngster from Watford.

Staying

"Anis has definitely stayed on with us," Reinhardt told Hamburg's official website.

"In recent days he was off to England to have a trial period with Watford and they were trying to land him on a six-month loan deal, without knowing him as a player.

"This looked nonsense to him and to our club. This is why he is staying on."

Reinhardt says the club also refused an offer from fellow Bundesliga side Stuttgart for striker Mladen Petric on transfer deadline day, insisting their proposed terms were unsuitable.

"Stuttgart came up with an offer right after last weekend's action," added Reinhardt. "This was unacceptable.

"We would have agreed to sell him if the economical terms had been alright and we had found a good replacement for our first-team squad. But neither was the case."

Last minute

Stuttgart general manager Fredi Bobic added of his attempt to swoop for Petric: "We fought hard to sign him, right up to the last minute of the transfer window.

"We had an agreement with the player, but unfortunately we could not find one with the club."

Meanwhile, Hamburg have confirmed goalkeeper Wolfgang Hesl has joined Austria top-flight leaders SV Ried on a season-long loan deal.

After falling down the pecking order at Hamburg since the arrival of Czech Republic international Jaroslav Drobny, Hesl has been called on by Ried to help plug the gap left by injured No.1 Thomas Gebauer, who is expected to be out for almost eight months with a cruciate problem.