Rot-Weiss Essen will have to travel to training camp without Jaka Cuber Potocnik. RWE could therefore react on the transfer market.

Another setback for Jaka Cuber Potocnik and Rot-Weiss Essen. The 20-year-old player on loan from 1. FC Köln will also be unable to travel to training camp due to his ongoing muscle injury.

According to “Kicker,” the striker will miss at least the first part of winter training and “almost certainly” the start of the year against TSV 1860 Munich on January 17, 2026. Potocnik will therefore undergo a rehabilitation program in Cologne in consultation with his home club in order to ideally be fully fit again this month. This is Potocnik’s third muscle injury of the season. RWE coach Uwe Koschinat confirmed at the beginning of December that they were working with 1. FC Köln to get to the bottom of the causes.

But what does this mean for Rot-Weiss Essen? Back in November, CEO Marc-Nicolai Pfeifer hinted that the club was “intensively” monitoring the market. It’s no secret that the focus was already on offensive players.

Abiama in the focus of Rot-Weiss Essen

According to “Kicker,” Essen is interested in Dickson Abiama from 1. FC Kaiserslautern, among others. Forecasting also knows of the interest in the 27-year-old Nigerian.

Abiama moved from Greuther Fürth to the Palatinate in January 2024, but was never able to really establish himself there. His biggest weakness is his finishing: the attacker, who can play both on the wing and in the center, too often fails to convert or deliver the final pass. In 30 appearances for FCK so far, he has not yet scored a single goal or provided an assist.

Things went better for Abiama recently one level lower in the 3rd division. During his loan spell at TSV 1860 Munich last season, he contributed two goals and four assists in 16 appearances. After coach Markus Anfang was fired, Abiama was given a new chance last summer under Torsten Lieberknecht: he has made ten appearances so far, nine of them coming off the bench.