Six injured

Alongside captain Steven Cherundolo, who recently had knee surgery, and Franca (rehabilitation training in Hanover), the following have yet to join up with the team on their training camp because of an extended holiday: Karim Haggui, Hiroki Sakai, Mame Diouf and Didier Ya Konan.

Here’s an overview of the players in Glücksburg who may not be at their peak:

Manuel Schmiedebach: The defensive midfielder was the unlucky one at Glücksburg. A muscle tear in his right thigh means a three-to-four week absence for Schmiedebach. Whether or not the injury has anything to do with the fact that “Manu” lost six kilos in the summer and therefore lacks the same robustness remains nothing more than hypothetical. This disciplined approach – the coaching staff wanted him to lose 3,5kg – shows “a clear sign” of someone keen on a starting place said Slomka. Schmiedebach is “nippier than before. That was our goal!”

Felipe: The Brazilian central defender has returned to Hanover to training together with Franca under the instruction of fitness coach Edward Kowlaczuk. The advantage of doing so is that water exercises such as aqua jogging are easier to do back in the city. “His recovery continues to progress,” explained Mirko Slomka. “We don’t want to take any unnecessary risks though and that’s why we’ve allowed Felipe to train on his own for two weeks.” Felipe is expected to return to full fitness for the second training camp (Stegersbach, Austria) on July 17th.

Leon Andreasen: After a worrying moment in the opening training session for Leon Andreasen, who was injured for a long time with a cruciate knee ligament injury, the all-clear came through. “Nothing is broken,” said Mirko Slomka calmly. The Dane is currently not involved in team training but is expected to rejoin soon. Slomka has seen the training incident as positive: “It was the type of duel that can lead to a ligament tear but his is stable and that should assure Leon.”

Christian Schulz: The 30-year-old’s injury has yet to be fully explained. “He didn’t feel right after the first friendly fixture,” confirmed Slomka. The defender was suffering with dizziness and flu-like symptoms. “His blood levels showed no abnormalities,” said the manager. Since then, “Schulle” has improved and “is on the right path to returning to the team,” said Slomka.

Leonardo Bittencourt: As a result of a pain in both big toes, the new signing put his running shoes on instead of his football boots. The attacking midfielder should be involved on Wednesday in the friendly against Flensburg.

Ali Gökdemir: The 21-year-old youth talent picked up muscle problems and needed a short break before returning to training.

Christopher Avevor: The defender, returning from a loan spell at St. Pauli, picked up muscle problems in the morning. “After two sets of 90 minutes, this is a precautionary move,” said Slomka.