Five players back in team training for Borussia Dortmund
By Tushar Bahl
Mats Hummels, Raphael Guerreiro, Emre Can, Julian Brandt and Thomas Meunier are all set to return to team training on Friday, in what is a big boost for Borussia Dortmund.
Borussia Dortmund’s injury woes are finally easing up, with five players on the verge of making their returns. Head coach Marco Rose confirmed during his press conference that Mats Hummels, Raphael Guerreiro, Emre Can, Julian Brandt and Thomas Meunier will all start training with the team on Friday.
Despite their returns, it is very unlikely that any of the above mentioned players will be ready in time to start for Borussia Dortmund against SC Freiburg on Saturday. A decision on which players can travel to Freiburg will be made after Friday’s training session.
Borussia Dortmund will likely have a makeshift back four once again on Saturday, featuring Felix Passlack, Axel Witsel, Manuel Akanji and Nico Schulz.
Marco Rose heaped praise on Nico Schulz for his recent performances during his press conference on Friday. Schulz has done a solid job at left-back in Raphael Guerreiro’s absence, and will now be aiming to keep his form going in the coming weeks.
"“If you look at the development of Nico Schulz this season, that is of course very, very impressive up to now. The way he is performing, the way he is training. He has more confidence in himself now.”"
Rose also praised Axel Witsel for the stability he has provided to the Borussia Dortmund defence, despite not being a natural centre-back.
"“Axel has given us stability. The calmness and clarity he radiates helps us. Of course, in certain situations you can see that he is not a central defender – for example, when we conceded the second goal against Bayern. But I am very, very satisfied.”"
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Borussia Dortmund will be aiming to return to winning ways as they travel to SC Freiburg this weekend. Rose expects a tough game against Christian Streich’s side. The Black and Yellows began their Bundesliga campaign with a 5-2 win over Eintracht Frankfurt last weekend.