Jonathan Burkardt Joins the List of Absentees
The German Football National Team’s injury crisis has shown no signs of abating, with Jonathan Burkardt, the 1. FSV Mainz 05 forward, forced to leave the team’s training camp in Herzogenaurach prematurely. According to the German Football Association, Burkardt suffered a laceration on his back during a training session on Sunday, requiring stitches and a period of rest.
This latest development adds to the growing list of absentees for the team’s upcoming Nations League semifinal against Portugal on Wednesday. Mainz 05 teammate Nadiem Amiri was earlier forced to depart and the injury woes have been compounded by the unavailability of Yann Aurel Bisseck, who was ruled out due to muscular problems in his right gluteal region. The Inter Milan defender had been named in the initial squad but was unable to travel to Herzogenaurach in time.
In a further blow, the team’s initial squad had already been depleted by the absence of key players, including Jamal Musiala, Antonio Rüdiger, Kai Havertz, Nico Schlotterbeck, Tim Kleindienst and Benjamin Henrichs, all of whom were ruled out due to various injuries. Angelo Stiller, the VfB Stuttgart player who won the DFB-Pokal over the weekend, also had to withdraw from the squad due to an injury.
Bundestrainer Julian Nagelsmann’s task of preparing the team for the semifinal has been significantly complicated by the mounting injury list, which has already forced a number of changes to the initial squad.