The green-and-whites go into Saturday’s match against Hertha BSC with the majority of the squad fit and ready to go. At his press conference on Thursday, head coach Florian Kohfeldt described Werder’s squad situation as “really good” ahead of the start of the 2020/21 Bundesliga. SVW have a full squad to choose from, with Ömer Toprak, Milot Rashica and Kevin Möhwald the only exceptions. Milos Veljkovic will return to the squad for the match against the side from Berlin.
“Milos wasn’t in the squad in Jena last week, as he started pre-season a little late due to the injury he picked up in the relegation playoff against Heidenheim. Considering how important Milos will be for the team this season, we thought it made sense for him to get an extra week of training in before returning to match action. It’s done him a lot of good – he will definitely be in the squad for the Hertha match, and he may also be an option for the starting line-up,” said Kohfeldt of the defender’s current condition.
The loss of Ömer Toprak to a calf injury is painful, says Kohfeldt: “Ömer trained as normal on Tuesday morning, then on Wednesday he felt something in his calf.” The head coach also confirmed that the 31-year-old defender would miss not only the Bundesliga opener against Hertha, but also the second match of the league season against Schalke 04. The situation is a little different for Milot Rashica, who will also miss Saturday’s match but “should definitely be able to play a part” in Gelsenkirchen. The 24-year-old winger sprained his knee whilst on international duty for Kosovo, but is now back training with the team. Kevin Möhwald is still a work in progress, and is “not yet available for selection”, according to Kohfeldt.
