Wuppertaler SV will start their pre-season training next Monday (19 June). A striker is still to come, the alternative stadium has probably been found.

18 outfield players and three goalkeepers – Wuppertaler SV’s squad planning is not yet complete, even after the signing of Niklas Dams (Borussia Dortmund II).

“We are planning with 20 field players plus three goalkeepers. We want to welcome this number of players at the start of training on 19 June,” sporting director Gaetano Manno told RS a few weeks ago. Even though the target has not quite been reached yet, Manno remains relaxed. “We won’t be put under pressure there. We want to get players who will really help us.”

One vacancy at WSV remains in attack after the departure of Serhat-Semih Güler (Hansa Rostock). “The striker will come,” Manno promised on the sidelines of Dams’ presentation and also explained what profile the new man in attack should bring. “A type of player like Güler, whom we wish the best, that he asserts himself in the 2nd division. If he doesn’t come until mid-July, then so be it. We will find a striker who will score the goals for us.”

Marco Stiepermann (ASC 09 Dortmund), meanwhile, is “not a one-to-one replacement for the club. You don’t often find a player like that,” said Manno, explaining that the departure of the top performer should be absorbed by the collective.

WSV has also taken the next step in the stadium question. “We want to play the first games of the new season in Velbert. We have pulled out all the stops and submitted all the documents to the association, so the ball is in the association’s court,” explained office manager Sven Steup.

“I can’t give a time frame on that,” Steup explained before the final licence notice of 1. FC Düren, which became public shortly after the press conference. He added that this time frame also depended on this “vacancy”. “When that’s fixed, the association will sit down to the match schedule and will then also tell us whether we can play in Velbert or not.”

Despite the possible double load on the turf or scheduling problems with SSVg Velbert, he said, “the cooperation with our colleagues in Velbert is going really great, and we hope we get the green light from the federation.” Meanwhile, the club is absolutely on target with the construction site at the Stadion am Zoo.

Wuppertaler SV’s preparation schedule:

19 June: Start of training

24 June: Test match at Fortuna Cologne

1 July: Test match at SV Wermelskirchen

5 July: Test match at ASC 09 Dortmund

8 July: Test match at Jong FC Utrecht

10 to 16 July: Training camp in Willingen

12 July: Test match against SC Paderborn II

22 July: Test match at TSV Steinbach-Haiger

28 to 30 July: Regionalliga West, 1st matchday