There was good news for head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo on Thursday, as all eight of VfB’s international players returned unscathed from their respective endeavours. Wahid Faghir, Naouirou Ahamada and Philipp Förster have also worked their way back to fitness and are in contention for Saturday’s match against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Fabian Bredlow, whose latest PCR test came back negative, is set to return to training on Friday ahead of the clash at Borussia-Park, but it remains to be seen whether the 26-year-old will be included in Matarazzo’s squad. Florian Schock could deputise in goal if Bredlow is left out.
Florian Müller, Waldemar Anton, Roberto Massimo, Erik Thommy and Orel Mangala are definitely ruled out after testing positive for coronavirus, while Enzo Millot is sidelined for several weeks with a knee injury. “No matter who plays, the courage and energy we bring onto the pitch is always key,” said Matarazzo. “If we perform as a unit, we’re capable of picking up points in any game.
“The game will be a challenge for us – Gladbach are strong in attack and have good strength in depth,” added the 43-year-old. Regardless of the quality of the opposition, it will be up to Matarazzo’s players to identify and exploit Borussia’s weaknesses this weekend.