Werder Bremen have been given a major injury headache with the news that striker Franco di Santo will be unavailable for the upcoming derby against Hamburg.
After several years of struggle, it seems that Di Santo is finally coming of age. The former Chelsea striker, who was signed from Wigan on a free transfer, has been able to move to the top of the Bundesliga goal scoring charts with six. He is ahead of the likes of Thomas Müller and Robert Lewandowski, who are far more established players than him. This has led to transfer rumours surrounding the Argentine.
The German outfit have categorically stated that they do not want to sell the 25-year-old. For the moment, they will be focusing on getting him back to full fitness. He has reportedly suffered ligament tear during training. It is not clear as to how many weeks he will be out of the first-team, but head coach Viktor Skripnik admitted that this was huge setback for the team. Even with Franco di Santo scoring many goals this campaign, the club have been unable to avoid a relegation battle. This is also the case with their arch rivals Hamburg, who are one point below them in the table.
Werder Bremen, though, carry slightly better form with two back-to-back wins. "It's obviously a setback for us. Franco had been in great form and we'd love to have had him available. But we do have alternative options in the squad who are chomping at the bit to be involved and who have our complete faith. I firmly believe we can compensate for Franco's absence,” said the Bremen manager. Werder Bremen have been one of the surprise candidates for relegation along with the likes of Borussia Dortmund and Hamburg. These three top teams are separated by just one point.