Schmelzer out of Gladbach game
January 19, 2016
Borussia Dortmund manager Thomas Tuchel has confirmed that left-back Marcel Schmelzer is likely to miss Saturday's Bundesliga clash against Borussia Mönchengladbach.
The German international was not picked for Dortmund's friendly with Sparta Prague on Tuesday night after Tuchel deemed the player unfit to play.
Speaking to the media after the 3-1 victory, Tuchel said: “Schmelzer had fully trained on Monday, but couldn't even play today.”
The 27-year-old has been suffering from muscular problems since the turn of the year and has failed to take part in any of Dortmund's three mid-season friendly matches.
When asked if the full-back would be fit for Saturday's first game back in the Bundesliga, the Dortmund manager responded: “It does not look quite as good.”
Tuesday's game also saw Shinji Kagawa and Adrian Ramos miss out on vital match practice due to problems with their own match fitness ahead of the weekend's action.
“Those were two precautions,” confirmed Tuchel, when asked why neither featured.
“Adrian Ramos has a small infection, we hope that soon goes away. Shinji has a slight gastrointestinal virus, so we immediately separated him from the group, so that it doesn't infect anyone.”
Dortmund currently sit second in the Bundesliga table, eight points behind Bayern Munich and six points ahead of Hertha Berlin in third.