Trouble for 1. FC Köln: Tunisian Ellyes Skhiri (26), who has been in great form in recent weeks, was hit so badly in the World Cup qualifier in Mauritania on Sunday that he had to be substituted. A diagnosis is pending.
After a duel in the 66th minute Skhiri went down, the TV pictures do not allow a clear conclusion about the nature of the injury. In any case, he felt the knee of his opponent and had to be treated on the shin. After treatment, he tried to return to the game, but had to retire after 71 minutes.
As things stand, he will be examined and treated after his return to Cologne. Only then will it be possible to determine the midfielder’s chances of playing on Friday in Hoffenheim.
If the Tunisian had to miss out, Dejan Ljubicic would fill in on the six. The Austrian is planned as Skhiri’s successor anyway, even though both President Werner Wolf and Managing Director Alexander Wehrle stressed in various interviews over the weekend that Skhiri would not be a candidate for sale in the winter.
He certainly will be in the summer, the contract running until 2023 will only then bring a transfer fee in line with the market in the double-digit millions. Unless Skhiri extends his contract prematurely, which there is no indication of at the moment.
