After eight months spent on the sidelines with a cruciate ligament injury, Raffael Korte is finally back wearing the red of 1. FC Union Berlin.

The wide midfielder finally made his 68-minute comeback during a 4-0 friendly win over Berliner AK during the international break. Korte also featured in the 1-0 triumph over FC Luzern.

Quoted in kicker, the 26-year-old said: “The games were important. I feel good. It's all super with the knee. Everything is stable.”

Fighting for his place

With Korte having been out for so long, Union’s attack has changed and so will his role when he comes into the side again. With their forwards finding the net on a regular basis, he may have to wait for a chance to break back into the side.

Kenny Prince Redondo, Steven Skrzybski and Adrian Nikci have all been successful on the wings, especially the former duo, and it will take a sizeable effort to knock either from their perch.

Keller keeps training under wraps

With a huge clash coming up against Hannover 96 this weekend, Jens Keller has opted to have private training sessions from Wednesday onwards to ensure his side are as well prepared as possible.

The Union boss has certainly seen his side hit their stride in attack and will cause problems when going forward when the two meet, but it is in defence that the problems have arose.

Perhaps this is why he has opted to keep the sessions closed, allowing him the time and space, as well as not giving anything away, especially given that Kristian Pedersen will not be available.

The defender was sent off in the defeat to 1. FC Nürnberg and will open up the door for one of Michael Parensen or Christopher Lenz to slot in at left-back. We’ll find out on Sunday.

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About the author
Jonathan Walsh
SoccerSight IFA commentator. VAVEL deputy editor-in-chief/VAVEL Bundesliga editor-in-chief and writer. Email: [email protected]