Lakic and Schipplock suffer injury

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim will be without strikers Srdjan Lakic and Sven Schipplock for the next few weeks due to injuries.

Lakic suffered a tear to the ligaments in his right knee in the game with 1. FC Köln on Sunday. Schipplock, who came on as a 59th minute substitute to replace the Croatia, was today revealed to have a similar injury in his right ankle.

Team doctor Dr. Henning Ott examined the two players on Monday and gave the following statement: “Sven Schipplock has suffered a routine injury, but he should be fit again in three weeks time. With Srdjan Lakic, the prognosis is more difficult, and the amount of time he will be out for depends on his knee's reaction in the next few days. Only then will we be able to say more.”

Losing two strikers may seem a bitter blow for the club, but manager Markus Babbel is refusing to feel downbeat about the situation. “With Lakic, I knew as soon as it happened that something was wrong. But we won't panic or feel sorry for ourselves. We have two able forwards in Peniel Mlapa and Knowledge Musona, who are hungry to do well for the club. Now they'll get a chance to show what they can do.”