FC Schalke 04: Ahmed Kutucu missed Wolfsburg game, thankfully only has bruise
Promising FC Schalke 04 forward Ahmed Kutucu has missed the team’s last two games against Eintracht Frankfurt and Wolfsburg with a foot injury, but he thankfully only has bruising.
Rabbi Matondo and Fabian Reese started at forward in FC Schalke 04’s last two games against Eintracht Frankfurt and VfL Wolfsburg, respectively, as Ahmed Kutucu missed both matches with a foot injury.
Kutucu suffered the ailment just before the 1-0 win over Frankfurt, and while he returned to practice before the Wolfsburg game, he didn’t play.
According to BILD’s Mark Siekmann, an MRI revealed that Kutucu, fortunately, only has bruising on his foot. However, the Turkey international did not practice with the rest of his teammates on Thursday.
It’s good to hear that Kutucu only has bruising on his foot and that there isn’t more serious structural damage. But since Schalke will face SC Freiburg on Saturday afternoon at the Veltins Arena, it looks like it may be too quick of a turnaround for Kutucu to return to the lineup.
Prior to suffering this foot injury, Kutucu created back-to-back late goals against Union Berlin and Bayer Leverkusen with his pressing off the bench. Kutucu is one of Schalke’s most promising young players due to his relentless effort, pace, and advanced reading of the game. The Royal Blues need more finishing quality in the attacking third to help breakout star Benito Raman, whose streak of four straight games with a goal ended in the 1-1 draw with Wolfsburg on Wednesday, and Kutucu can be a key part of the solution.
After Saturday’s game against Freiburg, Schalke will have the full break for injured players like Kutucu and center backs Matija Nastasic and Benjamin Stambouli to recover. Stambouli has been out since the October Revierderby with a broken foot, while Nastasic has missed the last three games with a knee injury. Salif Sane and Weston McKennie, who was injured against Frankfurt on Sunday, won’t return until later in the Ruckrunde.