Despite being a substitute, HSV blocked Soumahoro from U20 World Cup duty | OneFootball

Aboubaka Soumahoro did not get a chance to play in the last three matches for HSV. During this time, he had the opportunity to participate in the U20 World Cup in Chile.

Aboubaka Soumahoro has played for the French U20 team a total of eight times. The number of appearances would have been significantly higher if he hadn't missed almost the entire first six months of the current calendar year due to injury. After recovering, the central defender rejoined the team and played two test matches against Spain at the beginning of September. His nomination for the U20 World Cup, which began on September 27, was considered very likely.

“He was pre-elected. But it was very clear to us that we needed Abou here,” reported HSV sporting director Claus Costa (via Mopo). Therefore, the club decided not to let Soumahoro compete in Chile. Unlike the senior national teams, there is no obligation to release players. “Logically, it is an honor for us when our players are nominated,” emphasized Costa, but ultimately the interests of the Hanseatic team prevailed, as they would have had to do without the left-footer for up to five weeks.

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HSV is convinced of Soumahoro

Meanwhile, Soumahoro played only a minor role at HSV. In the 0:5 defeat in Munich, he paid a lot of dues, received an early yellow card, caused a hand penalty, and had to be substituted at halftime. Subsequently, the skillful defensive player spent the home game against Heidenheim entirely on the bench, missed the match against Union Berlin due to illness, and found no way back into the squad during the recent 4:0 victory celebration at Volkspark against Mainz.

Meanwhile, France reached the quarterfinals of the U20 World Cup on Thursday night, where Norway awaits. “In hindsight, one could say that a U20 World Cup wouldn't have been wrong for him,” Costa also noted, but immediately clarified: “But this assessment doesn't even arise. We have said with full conviction that it's not an issue because we need him here.”

Photo: Imago

On Wednesday, Soumahoro, who was signed in the winter for around two million euros from Paris FC, played an internal test match for the entire 60-minute duration. Given the recently very stable defense – HSV has not conceded a goal in the last two consecutive matches – a return to the starting lineup currently seems far off.

Photo: Getty Images

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.