Xavi Simons unlikely to be rested against Köln
Based on what RB Leipzig coach Marco Rose said at Friday's press conference, Xavi Simons looks unlikely to be rested against FC Köln.
However, speaking at his pre-match press conference on Friday, the Leipzig coach didn't seem to be planning to rotate heavily, claiming that his squad is in good shape after Wednesday's 3-1 win over Crvena Zvezda in the Champions League.
"We have no injury or fitness concerns from Wednesday's game," Rose told reporters.
He went on to express his hesitation about resting Xavi Simons, who has been a key player for Leipzig this season.
"Xavi is very important for us. So I don't know if tomorrow is the right game to rest him. It is clear that we have to be careful with him. We took him off a bit earlier against Darmstadt and last Wednesday," Rose said.
"So he's in good shape at the moment. We'll talk and see what makes sense. But knowing him, he'll want to be on the pitch."
Against Crvena Zvezda, Simons was replaced by Dani Olmo in the 75th minute and the Spaniard went on to make it 3-1. But having only recently returned from injury, Olmo isn't ready to start yet.
"Dani will be back in the starting line-up soon enough," said Rose.
"He could probably play 45 minutes at the moment, but I don't want to start a player in a Bundesliga game if I know I'll have to take him off at half-time. That would be a bit presumptuous."