Shortly before the start of the new year against FC Schalke on Saturday evening, the flu virus is circulating at Hertha. Captain and key player Fabian Reese is also affected.

Hertha BSC welcomes league leaders FC Schalke 04 on Saturday evening (January 17, 8:30 p.m.) for the start of the second half of the 2nd Bundesliga season. It’s a game that has fans electrified. A few days before the game, the Olympic Stadium is already virtually sold out, with more than 70,000 spectators wanting to see the duel between the two traditional clubs.

The “Old Lady” is nine points behind leaders S04, and with a win, the ambitious capital club wants to start its comeback in order to get back into the promotion race. In preparation for the second half of the season, Hertha completed a training camp in Portugal. But in the first training session after returning from Lagos, four players were missing due to an infection.

Captain and former Schalke player Fabian Reese, Marton Dardai, Leon Jensen, and Diego Demme are all affected by the flu epidemic. With only four days to go until the big game against the Royal Blues, there is a question mark over the availability of the quartet. The absence of 28-year-old striker Reese, who has been directly involved in ten goals (three goals, seven assists) so far this season, would be particularly difficult for the sixth-placed team to cope with. Hungarian international Dardai is also a regular starter and is an absolute fixture in Berlin’s central defense. In addition, it is very likely that midfielder Kevin Sessa (ankle injury) and center back John Anthony Brooks (rehab training) will miss the start of the second half of the season.

However, there was also good news for head coach Stefan Leitl’s team: On Tuesday, attacking players Maurice Krattenmacher and Dawid Kownacki were back in action and should therefore be options for the Schalke game. Both had also recently been sidelined due to infection.