Streich commits to starting Keitel in Eggestein's absence
SC Freiburg trainer Christian Streich showed no hesitation in naming his choice to take Maximilian Eggestein's place in central midfield during his Thursday presser.
After central midfielder Maximilian Eggestein played through the pain with a broken forearm against Stuttgart last week, the question of who would take the place of the 25-year-old's place in Christian Streich's starting XI has been settled. Streich verbally committed to 22-year-old homegrown product Yannick Keitel thursday at his final pre-match presser.
"It's just Yannik's turn because he brings everything," Streich said of the nearby Breisgach native, "I just want him to play, he deserves it. "He always gives 100 percent. We are fully convinced of Yannik and I'm absolutely looking forward to seeing him on the pitch tomorrow."
Streich didn't necessarily reveal whether Keitel would simply slide into the double-six set-up alongside Nicolas Höfler. The SCF gaffer is known for making multiple personnel and tactical switches, even when his side finds itself in a strong run-of-form.
In point-of-fact, Streich basically shrugged off his team's 1-0 victory over Stuttgart last weekend and emphasized that he still took opponents Bochum seriously despite their 0-7 drubbing at the hands of Bayern.
"Bochum will be a completely different story," Streich said, "They will give everything to show a response to Sunday's result. They have quality and mentality, which is what [VfL head-coach] Thomas Reis stands for."
Streich was also asked questions about tomorrow afternoon's Europa League draw. Namely how he would watch it and which opponents he might prefer. The popular trainer said that he would probably check out the draw on his exercise bike and further noted that he wouldn't be opposed to a novel destination he'd never been to, such as Azerbaijan.