Second division club FC Schalke 04 will again be without Assan Ouédraogo for Friday’s home match against SV Elversberg. He will nevertheless travel to the DFB on Thursday.

Second-division soccer club FC Schalke 04 will also have to do without Assan Ouédraogo this Friday (18:30, Sky) in the home match against promoted SV Elversberg.

The 17-year-old is still not fit for action, but will travel to the DFB U17 national team this Thursday, Schalke 04 announced on Wednesday. A structural injury could be ruled out in the MRI.

The talented midfielder had missed Schalke’s last two competitive matches at FC St. Pauli (1:2 n.V.) and at 1. FC Nürnberg (2:1) due to thigh problems. He was back on the training pitch on Tuesday, but still has problems and is therefore not fit to play, Schalke announced in a statement. He will travel to the DFB on Thursday, with the U17 World Cup starting next week

We are therefore handing Assan over to the DFB on Thursday so that they can form their own opinion and continue to build him up carefully

André Hechelmann

“We are therefore handing Assan over to the DFB on Thursday so that they can form their own opinion and continue to build him up carefully. At the U17 European Championships a few months ago, he was successfully integrated step by step after a long injury. Our clear expectation now is that the DFB will once again gradually introduce him to the team in order to see whether he is eligible for tournament appearances,” Schalke sports director André Hechelmann is quoted as saying in the press release.

In the group stage, the German team will face Mexico (November 12, 13:00 CET, Bandung), New Zealand (November 15, 13:00, Bandung) and Venezuela (November 18, 10:00, Jakarta).

Whether Ouédraogo will remain with the DFB if the German team progresses is still open due to a loophole in the Fifa regulations. The official Fifa suspension period only lasts from November 13 to 21, not for the entire World Cup. And Schalke will only definitely release Ouédraogo for these nine days