Baumgart sounds the alarm after Ljubicic's injury: "We're slowly running out of boys"

1. FC Köln crashed 2:5 in the derby against Borussia Gladbach and also had to deal with Florian Kainz being sent off. However, Dejan Ljubicic’s injury should be particularly painful. The long absence of the midfielder brings with it a staff shortage.

Dejan Ljubicic has rendered loyal service to Effzeh as a long-distance runner, fighter and again and again as a goalscorer. The midfielder has scored a total of five goals this season. However, there won’t be any more in the foreseeable future. The new signing from summer 2021 tore an inner ligament after a foul by Bensebaini and will be out for ten to twelve weeks. The first half of the season and the football year 2022 are over. Only after the World Cup will Ljubicic very likely be able to get involved again. After all, the BILD announced that an operation was not necessary. Ljubicic’s absence does not bode well for the people of Cologne. After all, the hospital is already full enough. The long-term injured Mathias Olesen, Jeff Chabot, Tim Lemperle and Sebastian Andersson are not available and Jan Thielmann also has to fully recover after a virus infection. In addition, the Cologne team will have to do without the services of offensive leader Florian Kainz next weekend.

Such a lack of staff is of course unfortunate when you consider that the club already has to shoulder the unusual double burden of the league and conference league. “We have a problem now. We’re slowly running out of guys who are important for our game,” coach Steffen Baumgart suggested in an interview with BILD alarm. Ljubicic’s injury “really hurts” and Thielmann’s absence “is already hurting”. Let’s hope that the rest of the squad stays fit and that the club isn’t hit by a wave of corona or other illnesses. “You’ll notice that things can get tight in the long run,” the coach said. Next Thursday, Cologne will be heading to Belgrade for the groundbreaking Conference League game.

This article was originally published on 90min.com/de as Baumgart sounds the alarm after Ljubicic injury: “We’re running out of boys”.