In his ex-protégés Lazaro and Wolf, Gladbach coach Rose gets two dream players. There won't be more. According to sports director Eberl, all top performers will remain this year. So Rose can approach the next goals with even more elements of his philosophy.
Harsewinkel (dpa) - Borussia Mönchengladbach is planning the next step with only two new players this summer. In Valentino Lazaro, coach Marco Rose finally had another dream player on the pitch at the training camp in Harsewinkel, East Westphalia.
With extravagant new braids, the 24-year-old Austrian all-rounder took part in the regeneration unit together with Hannes Wolf (21), who had previously been signed up. Previously, the loan deal with Inter Milan had been made perfect.
"As far as additions are concerned, it was that for Borussia Mönchengladbach," stated sports director Max Eberl immediately, despite the "cash blessing with the Champions League". The third qualification in club history for the European premier class flushes a good 20 million euros into the corona-related strained club coffers. Due to the Corona crisis, Borussia, which has grown strongly for years and is sportingly successful, would probably have come without the Champions League. A transfer offensive was still out of the question for Eberl. The 46-year-old recalled the salary waiver by the professionals after the outbreak of the pandemic: "I can't stand there in the summer and get millions out. I'm making myself unbelievable."
Lazaro and the ex-Leipziger Wolf were instead loaned out for a year. Then purchase options could take effect. The loan duo is now intended to give the high-quality squad of fourth place in the Bundesliga the decisive push for confirmation of the Champions League qualification. Or more? "Of course I hope that we can attack in the Bundesliga," said Lazaro, who has had a difficult year at Inter and Newcastle United after his strong time at Hertha BSC (2017 to 2019).
Wolf hardly played in Leipzig either. But Rose really wanted to have his two former protégés from their Salzburg times together. Both know Rose's ideas very well and embody the power football that the coach so values. Right-back Stefan Lainer, whom Rose brought from Salzburg last year, proved to be a direct hit. That's why Eberl expects a lot from the new duo. "The two are an emergency aid because they know the processes," said the manager. "They arrive very quickly because they speak the language and know the trainer." Lazaro, in whom other top clubs are also said to have been interested, confirmed: "It's no secret that I like the system very much."
Rose's system and his idea of the fast switching game could now work even better. In the pre-season, the coach adapted the system flexibly to the circumstances of the Borussia squad, which had been calibrated for ball possession football for years. "We want to play even more flexibly in the new season," said midfielder Florian Neuhaus on Thursday. "Last season was good, we can be very satisfied with it. But the opponents have adjusted to us a bit now, they are better prepared for us."
In order to meet the demands of ambitious Rose, Eberl does not want to let any high performers go this time. Instead, in Raffael, Fabian Johnson and Tobias Strobl, protagonists of "old" Gladbach football went. "We have positioned our squad even better at the top and across the board, so that we are intensifying the competitive situation again because we have a lot planned and want to be ambitious," said the Gladbach coach.
Danis Zakaria is back again: The 23-year-old Swiss who was injured for months has completed part of the team training again. The midfielder suffered a knee injury at the beginning of the year and should now be brought back to the team step by step.
This also applies to attacker Marcus Thuram, who injured his ankle at the end of the past season. Top scorer Alassane Plea is still missing due to muscular problems. Coach Rose hopes to get his trio of top performers back into shape at Borussia Dortmund by the start of the season on September 18.
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Club management Borussia Mönchengladbach
Lazaro loan
Neuhaus statements