Bitter news for SC Verl: a new striker has suffered a cruciate ligament rupture in training. He will be out of action for a long time.

Preparations for the third division season are gradually entering the home stretch, but SC Verl has been dealt a bitter blow. The East Westphalia club will not be able to count on Alem Japaur in the coming months. The new signing suffered a cruciate ligament tear and will be out for a long time. This was announced by SCV on Monday. The accident happened during a tackle in a training session. On Monday, the devastating diagnosis came after an MRI scan: Japaur has torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. The 21-year-old is set to undergo surgery soon. “Everyone at the club wishes Alem a speedy recovery and will support him in every way possible on his road to comeback,” the Verler wrote in a statement. The German-Bosnian is unlikely to be available for selection by new coach Tobias Strobl until the second half of the season at the earliest. This is a bitter blow for Verl, who signed the striker from Würzburg just a few weeks ago. His goals in the Bavarian regional league had attracted the interest of the East Westphalia club, who had previously been playing for the U23 team of FC Augsburg.

“Alem impresses above all with his power and assertiveness. He can hold up the ball and knows where the goal is. As a target player in attack, he will make our attacking play more dangerous,” said Sebastian Lange, then sporting director, who has since moved to SC Paderborn, at the time of the transfer.

And Japaur seemed to be settling in well at the sports club. He has already scored two goals in four test matches. In addition to Japaur, Verl signed another young striker in Alessio Besio (SC Freiburg II) in the summer after experienced goal scorer Lars Lokotsch moved to Preußen Münster.

It remains to be seen whether the club will respond to Japaur’s departure with a transfer. SC Verl will kick off the new season on August 2 with an away game at Waldhof Mannheim.