Borussia start preparations for trip to Mainz

The Foals began training ahead of Friday’s away game at 1. FSV Mainz 05 on Tuesday afternoon. Daniel Farke was without Julian Weigl and Jan Olschowsky, while Tony Jantschke couldn’t complete the session.

Borussia began the week with a 90-minute training session on Tuesday afternoon. Julian Weigl wasn’t part of the group out on the training ground. He partially ruptured his syndesmosis ligament in the 3-2 home win over FC Bayern at the weekend and will therefore be out for several weeks. Goalkeeper Jan Olschowsky was also absent. “Jan is ill and has also strained a tendon in his thumb,” explained coach Daniel Farke. “It’s unlikely he’ll be available on Friday.”

Tony Jantschke wasn’t able to complete the full session on Tuesday afternoon after his knee gave way. “It didn’t look good. He’s normally a tough cookie and he doesn’t pull out of training that easily. We’ll have to see what the scans show,” said Farke. Luca Netz, who missed the Bayern game due to a thigh issue, returned to team training. He will be an option for Farke for the game in Mainz on matchday 22.

The Zerofivers are sat on exactly the same number of points as the Foals (29), just one place behind them in the table. “The 3-2 win over Bayern was really important for our team spirit and confidence levels. That’s now in the past though, we’ve got an important and tricky game coming up on Friday. Mainz showed what they’re capable of with their 3-2 win in Leverkusen and will also be full of confidence. We have to be fully focused on this match,” added Farke.

The Foals will train twice more before the game on Friday, once tomorrow morning and once behind closed doors on Thursday.