Knee bother sidelines Freier
Sunday, May 30, 2004
Article summary
Attacking midfield player Paul Freier is out of Germany's UEFA EURO 2004™ squad with a knee ligament injury.
Article body
VfL Bochum 1848 attacking midfield player Paul Freier is out of Germany's UEFA EURO 2004™ squad after sustaining a knee injury.
Friendly blow
Freier picked up the injury in Thursday's friendly against Malta and was taken to hospital where scans revealed that he had damaged a knee ligament. "Sadly Paul has had to pull out of the tournament," confirmed Germany coach Rudi Völler.
Second player out
The 25-year-old is the second player Germany have lost to injury during the build-up to EURO 2004™ after Hamburger SV's Christian Rahn failed to pass a fitness test and was replaced by Tottenham Hotspur FC midfield player Christian Ziege.
Delayed decision
Völler will not be naming a replacement for Freier immediately. "I want to wait and see how the Under-21 side perform in their second match against Sweden [on Sunday]," he said. "There is no reason for panic at the moment." Lukas Podolski of 1. FC Köln and FC Bayern München midfield player Bastian Schweinsteiger are thought to be in contention for the vacant place.
