Surprise: BVB star Kobel misses start of World Cup preparations | OneFootball

After the end of the season with Borussia Dortmund, Gregor Kobel will first have to take a break. The BVB goalkeeper will miss the start of the Swiss national team’s World Cup preparations due to the flu.

The Swiss national team began its World Cup preparations on Whit Monday without Gregor Kobel. While head coach Julian Nagelsmann will not gather his Germany squad for the training camp until Wednesday, the “Nati” had already entered the crucial phase before the tournament in North America in Abtwil near Lucerne.

Ironically, Switzerland’s number one is initially absent. As several media outlets consistently report, the Borussia Dortmund goalkeeper caught a mild flu during a short vacation after the final Bundesliga match. After BVB’s 2-0 win over Werder Bremen, Kobel had taken advantage of a few days off before illness brought him to a halt. The 28-year-old is only expected to join the team once the medical staff gives the green light.

For Kobel, the World Cup would be the first major tournament as Switzerland’s first-choice goalkeeper. After years in the shadow of Yann Sommer, the Dortmund man has now firmly established himself as number one. Among those who reported to the World Cup training camp at the start were Zeki Amdouni, Aurèle Amenda, Nico Elvedi, Christian Fassnacht, Cedric Itten, Marvin Keller, Johan Manzambi, Miro Muheim, Yvon Mvogo, Fabian Rieder, Silvan Widmer and Denis Zakaria.

Switzerland begin World Cup preparations without BVB goalkeeper Kobel

Overall, the Swiss squad includes numerous familiar faces from the Bundesliga. Alongside Rieder of FC Augsburg and Freiburg breakthrough star Johan Manzambi, Luca Jaquez of VfB Stuttgart, Gladbach professional Nico Elvedi, Aurèle Amenda of Eintracht Frankfurt, HSV player Miro Muheim and Mainz veteran Silvan Widmer were also called up. From the 2. Bundesliga, Cedric Itten of Fortuna Düsseldorf is also part of the squad.

Photo: IMAGO

The team is led by captain Granit Xhaka, who is now under contract with AFC Sunderland. Former Bundesliga stars such as ex-BVB player Manuel Akanji, Ricardo Rodríguez and Denis Zakaria also continue to form the backbone of the “Nati.” However, some players will only join the team later because their seasons in their respective leagues did not end until the weekend.

Before departing for the USA, Switzerland will play a friendly in St. Gallen against Jordan. In their World Cup opener, the “Nati” will face Qatar on June 13. The other opponents in Group B are Bosnia and Herzegovina and co-hosts Canada.

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