BVB new signing Nwaneri: An immediate option for Hoffenheim | OneFootball

It’s clear that three BVB first team players—Giannis Konstantelias, Emre Can (both with torn cruciate ligaments), and Nico Schlotterbeck (ankle)—will definitely be out this weekend. However, several other Black and Yellows players who had also been sidelined with injuries recently were able to celebrate their return to team training—at least partially—this week. Among them was Ramy Bensebaini, who suffered bruised ribs about two weeks ago in the Super Cup against Bayern Munich.

“Ramy trained with the team for the first time today, though the intensity wasn’t particularly high. It went well so far, and we’ll see how things develop tomorrow. He’s already making progress, but today’s session was still a long way from Bundesliga-level soccer,” said Niko Kovac, emphasizing that the intensity in Thursday’s early training session hadn’t been too high.

Two 17-year-old young professionals, Enzo dos Santos and Mussa Kaba, also partially returned to team training. Dos Santos, who had signed a long-term professional contract with Borussia Dortmund just a few days ago, had been struggling with knee problems in recent weeks, while Kaba had been forced to sit out for months due to muscle issues. Referring to the two, Kovac noted: “But they’re not quite ready to compete for a spot on the roster yet.”

Schlotterbeck Trains with the Ball at His Feet for the First Time

Ethan Nwaneri will be an immediate option for the matchday roster against TSG Hoffenheim. The 19-year-old was signed from Arsenal just on Tuesday and has already made an impression in training, as Niko Kovac confirmed.

“We’re very happy that, after the huge disappointment surrounding Giannis Konstantelias, we were able to find a very, very good replacement on such short notice. A big compliment to our scouting department—I’d also like to mention Lars Ricken and Ole Book here. Ethan is a fit player who, in theory and perhaps in practice as well, could play right away. He has excellent technical skills, which we’ve already seen in training. I’m very satisfied,” said the Black and Yellows’ coach.

For the first time this season, center back Nico Schlotterbeck also recently returned to the training field in Dortmund-Brackel with the ball at his feet . Speaking about the defender and vice-captain on Thursday, Dortmund’s head coach said: “He’s doing the drills on the field, but still on his own—without opponents and without teammates. We’ll see to what extent we can step that up over the next few days and partially integrate him. Of course, the goal is to have him back as soon as possible. But there can’t be any setbacks, so we’re all building him up carefully.”Mats-Yannick Roth