Farke hints at immediate use of new midfielders: "We need competition there."
Borussia Mönchengladbach head-coach Daniel Farke confirmed that Julian Weigl will be a part of his matchday squad on Sunday against Mainz.
The BMG trainer even suggested that the German international might start. It looks to be the case that the newly acquired Nathan Ngoumou will also make the bench squad.
The BMG trainer even suggested that the German international might start. It looks to be the case that the newly acquired Nathan Ngoumou will also make the bench squad.
| Julian Weigl | Borussia Mönchengladbach |
Farke used the exact same words some weeks ago when rumors about possibly acquiring midfielder Julian Weigl began to crop up. Farke will undoubtedly the satisfied that BMG sporting director Roland Virkus scored a major coup in acquiring Weigl (reportedly not even with a loan fee) from Benfica on Thursday.
The question now becomes whether Farke can find a place for Weigl in midfield. A double-six pairing of of Christoph Kramer and Manu Kouadio Koné has functioned very well thus far. Last week against Bayern, a 5-4-1 with Kramer as sweeper behind an eight-pairing of Koné and Florian Neuhaus kept the center compact and limited the defending champions to distance efforts and unproductive possession outside of the box.
Farke still indicated that he had no problems potentially starting Weigl right away.
"He's at the peak age of his career," Farke noted of Weigl, " He's top fit, experienced and knows this level. Julian has his strengths in the center, brings a very intelligent game, and he can dictate the flow. We have good players in his position, but we need competition there."
Farke even suggested that there might be a deployment for Gladbach's other big midfield acquisition near the end of the transfer window, Frenchman Nathan Ngoumou. Of the 22-year-old, the BMG trainer said "he has every chance of being part of the squad right away."
Farke can draw on the full complement of his roster at home Sunday against Mainz. Only right-back Stefan Laimer is unavailable. The Gladbach gaffer emphasized that his team had a tough task ahead of them squaring off against Bo Svennson's Rheinhessen, whom Farke called "highly intense".