Svensson praises Leitsch: "I don't think Schlotterbeck is much better than him"
Mainz coach Bo Svensson has lavished praise on new signing Maxim Leitsch, saying he doesn't believe Nico Schlotterbeck is a much better player than him.
Mainz 05 lost one of their key players ahead of this season, as now former club captain Moussa Niakhaté left the Bundesliga side to join Nottingham Forest for a reported fee around €10 million.
Maxim Leitsch has come in from Bochum to fill the void that Niakahté left, and Mainz coach Bo Svensson is delighted with the signing of the 24-year-old, who cost around €3.5 million.
"He's been signed for the position as a left centre-back that Niakahté played and has many of the qualities that Moussa has, such as pace, ability on the ball, ball-winning ability and strength in air. He's a player that I've kept an eye on for years," Svensson said on an episode of Danish podcast 'Mediano'.
The Danish coach went on to compare Leitsch with Nico Schlotterbeck, who joined Borussia Dortmund from Freiburg in a €20 million deal after a highly impressive 2021/22 season.
Although Schlotterbeck cost nearly six times as much as Leitsch, Svensson doesn't believe the German international is much better than Mainz's new signing.
"Schlotterbeck is a German international, who was signed for €20 million, but I don't think he is a much better player than Maxim. However, he's a different type of player. Maxim can still develop his personality and improve in terms of believing in himself. But he has a lot of qualities that make him a great, modern defender, and his potential is big. Therefore, I'm delighted that we managed to sign him, and he has done well in the first few games."
In the same interview, Svensson said he believes Mainz pulled off a scoop with the signing of 25-year-old attacking midfielder Angelo Fulgini, who has joined the club from Angers for a reported €6 million.
"I didn't expect us to have a chance of signing him. But partly because he's good friends with Niakahté, we got the chance to talk to him. We knew he had just one year left on his contract, and that made things a bit easier for us," said Svensson.
"He's at a good age and plays a position, where we needed to strengthen after losing [Jean-Paul] Boëtius. He's a really good fit for the way we want to play. He's capable of playing as a No. 8 and as a No. 10 and has the creativity that we would like in central midfield. He has already settled in well and will only keep getting better."