Sixth corona case – VfB Stuttgart are running out of players
Status: 7:53 p.m.
Corona chaos at VfB: Pellegrino Matarazzo has to do without numerous players
Quelle: Getty Images/Matthias Hangst
At VfB Stuttgart, more and more players are getting infected with the corona virus. Five professionals have so far been out of action in Mönchengladbach. The Swabians have to ask themselves fundamental questions. At least there is positive news.
Pellegrino Matarazzo was on Friday morning to see how he thinks about the spread of the corona virus within his team. A little more than 30 hours before the away game at Borussia Mönchengladbach on October 16, midfielder Orel Mangala also tested positive. Matarazzo the players go out.
The Belgian is next to defense chief Waldemar Anton, goalkeeper Florian Müller and U21 national player Roberto Massimo, the fourth regular player who will be absent from the Swabian Bundesliga club in Gladbach due to Corona. In addition, Erik Thommy, who is also isolated, is also out.
Next up: Orel Mangala also tested positive for the corona virus
Quelle: Getty Images/Matthias Hangst
“You can see that the momentum may not be one hundred percent on our side,” Matarazzo tried to express himself diplomatically. One could also ask: How did VfB get into this corona chaos? Six players tested positive within a very short time. After all, substitute goalkeeper Fabian Bredlow was able to train again on Friday after his quarantine after a final test was negative. Matarazzo wanted to wait and see if he could play on Saturday.
Despite Bredlow, VfB now has fundamental questions: Why now Mangala too? Why have players been constantly tested positive in the past few days? And what about the players’ willingness to vaccinate?
VfB cannot convince players to vaccinate
Matarazzo doesn’t like the delicate subject. Of course, as a coach, he would be happy if all his players got vaccinated. But neither can he force them. So he says: “We keep talking. And now this is an opportunity to intensify these conversations. ”Does that annoy him? “It is certainly a bit more complex than desired.”
What remains for him now is an extremely decimated squad for the difficult game at Borussia, who have recently won twice. Should Bredlow not be ready after the final training, the third goalkeeper Florian Schock would have to make his Bundesliga debut. In midfield, Denmark’s U21 international Nikolas Nartey is likely to appear for the first time from the start in the German House of Lords due to Mangala’s failure. The coach left it open whether Anton will be replaced in the defense center by Atakan Karazor or the Japanese Hiroki Ito.
Despite all the shortage of personnel, Matarazzo believes there is a chance on the Lower Rhine. “There will certainly be one room or another that opens,” he said. “First and foremost, it’s about the courage we bring to the pitch. If we act as a unit and act with courage and energy, then we always have a chance – also in Gladbach. ”He will probably only see which players he can bet there on Saturday evening. In the worst case, there could be additional corona cases.
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