Borussia Dortmund stepped onto the training pitch on Monday without Daniel Svensson and Konstantinos Karetsas. On the eve of a Champions League opener, that sort of absence usually sets alarm bells ringing.
Niko Kovac quickly turned them off.
Both players are fully fit and in contention for Tuesday’s clash with Villarreal, the head coach confirmed at his pre‑match press conference. Their omission from full team training was precautionary, not problematic.
“That was completely normal today. It can happen from time to time that we let one or two players recover in the locker room or in the gym. Both are in perfect health and are options for the game,” Kovac stressed, keen to shut down any talk of a late selection crisis.
The real setback lies elsewhere.
Filippo Mané, forced off in the first half of Dortmund’s wild 3-2 Bundesliga win over Hoffenheim at the weekend, will miss the European curtain-raiser with a muscle injury. It is a frustrating blow for a player whose numbers had impressed the staff.
“We're assuming nothing else will happen before the international break. He'll certainly return after that,” Kovac said. “Unfortunately, things like this are just part of the game. In terms of training load and training management, everything was top-notch; he had really good endurance and strength numbers.”
So Kovac loses one option but regains two, at least in practical terms. The picture is more complicated when suspensions enter the frame.
Nico Schlotterbeck and Ramy Bensebaini, both on the comeback trail from recent injuries, have made encouraging progress in their recoveries. Neither can be used against Villarreal. Bans rule them out just as they edge closer to full involvement.
Long-term absentees Giannis Konstantelias and Emre Can also remain unavailable, trimming the coach’s choices in key areas and forcing Dortmund to lean again on the depth that carried them through the Hoffenheim thriller.
The stage is set: a Champions League opener, a patched but competitive squad, and a coach backing his medical and fitness work. Now the question is whether this reshuffled group can turn that careful preparation into a statement under European lights.
