VfB confirm Millot injury, Mislintat speaks on COVID situation
VfB Stuttgart confirmed more bitter injury news on Wednesday. New acquisition Enzo Millot will be unavailable to the team for some time after suffering a knee injury in training.
Amid all of the bad news afflicting his squad, sporting director Sven Mislintat insisted that the team would be ready to face Gladbach in Saturday's late kickoff.
The young French midfielder whom Stuttgart felt comfortable assigning the no. 8 tricot on arrival this summer will be unavailable to the Swabians for an extended period of time. On Wednesday the club confirmed that 19-year-old midfielder Enzo Millot had suffered a knee injury.
Amid all of the bad news afflicting his squad, sporting director Sven Mislintat insisted that the team would be ready to face Gladbach in Saturday's late kickoff.
While the club emphasized that surgery could be avoided, sources close to the club at German footballing magazine Kicker report that the injury will necessitate approximately six weeks downtime off the pitch.
"This is bitter news," VfB sporting director Sven Mislintat noted in a statement, "He was on a positive path recently. Now, unfortunately, he will have to patiently wait to rejoin team training."
Since joining the club, Millot has played twice for VfB II and made two relief appearances for the senior side. Speaking about the player some weeks ago, head-coach Pellegrino Matarazzo noted that the teenager might be fit for the starting XI with more adjustment time and more consistency on the training pitch.
Enzo #Millot hat sich am gestrigen Dienstag im Mannschaftstraining einen Anriss des Innenbandes im rechten Knie zugezogen. Die Verletzung macht keine Operation erforderlich.
— VfB Stuttgart (@VfB) October 13, 2021
Gute Besserung, Enzo! #VfB | Zur Meldung 🗞️➡️https://t.co/fsAm8wjc15 pic.twitter.com/BvvJT9CzBa
Personnel problems continue to plague the Württembergers, who have five players (including both the first and second string keeper) out with COVID this weekend. The team must also deal with the pressure of playing in the upcoming round's "Top-Spiel"; the 18:30 kickoff against a surging Borussia Mönchengladbach.
"We're still up for this big game," Mislintat said yesterday when speaking to reporters, "Of course, Gladbach are the favorites, but we have a strong squad and can still take all three points."