Freiburg (dpa / lsw) – On the weekend, Luca Waldschmidt kicked the first time during training with his new club Benfica Lisbon. More than 2000 kilometers away, SC Freiburg’s test match against Karlsruher SC was played without the national player. In preparation for the new Bundesliga season, the Breisgauer must now find a replacement for the next prominent departure.
“His change hurts us both sportily and personally,” said SC sports director Jochen Saier on the sidelines of the 1-1 draw on Saturday against second division club KSC someone comes there again. ” Initially, Freiburg is looking for a Waldschmidt replacement internally, but the SC is also on the lookout for another new addition.
After goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow, Waldschmidt is the second prominent departure this summer. The offensive player signed a five-year contract with the Portuguese record champions until 2025. According to Benfica, the transfer fee for the 24-year-old is 15 million euros.
The people of Baden are used to losing top performers again and again. Christian Streich was accordingly pragmatic. “If he had stayed there it would have been extremely exciting, that is clear, with a player of such quality,” said the coach. “But now we have to deal with the situation.”
In addition to the regulars in Sturm, Nils Petersen and Lucas Höler, the offensive players will therefore be under special observation during preparation. But she does not want to measure it against Waldschmidt, who as a left footer has “exceptional qualities with the ball”. “I don’t want to compare the guys there,” said the coach. As a new addition to the offensive, the Breisgauers have already brought Ermedin Demirovic.
Waldschmidt switched from Hamburger SV to the sports club two years ago and matured into a national player under one stroke. The 24-year-old does not see the fact that he is no longer playing near national coach Joachim Löw, who lives in Freiburg, as a disadvantage. “I think that I can perform very well here, too, that should then spill over to Germany,” Waldschmidt told Sky TV station in Lisbon. “I think the national coach can also be happy when I can play international games and perform there.”
However, Benfica must first play in the Champions League qualification. “I was aware of that when I made the decision,” said Waldschmidt, “we want to do everything we can to qualify.” In any case, Benfica has high expectations of him: Waldschmidt’s contract contains a release clause and the striker could leave the club early for a fixed transfer fee of 88 million euros.
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