training camp in South Africa - Due to visa issues: Two professionals from Augsburg stay home
Football professionals Kristijan Jakic and Nediljko Labrovic will no longer travel to the training camp of FC Augsburg in South Africa. The two Croatians, whose entry into South Africa was denied, were unable to clarify the matter with the authorities. Since no new visa could be issued on Monday and no short-term solution was in sight on Tuesday, FC Augsburg decided that both would no longer travel to South Africa for the training camp.
Individual training instead of team sessions
Instead, both players will complete individual training programs in the coming days and prepare for re-entry into team training upon the team's return from South Africa.
Problems with the visa affected both the midfielder and the new goalkeeper Labrovic. At their departure from Germany, everything looked good for the Croatians. However, they only made it as far as Johannesburg, where they were expelled from the airport system under Nigerian names. This was reported by "Augsburger Allgemeine" and "Kicker".
Sport director: "Very unfortunate"
"It's very unfortunate that Kristijan and Nediljko cannot participate in the training camp with the team," said Sport Director Marinko Jurendic. "Everything was tried in the last few days to enable both players to join the team, but we have decided to create the best possible framework conditions for them at home with an individual training program to prepare for the team training next week."
New signing joins FC Augsburg
Meanwhile, a new signing joined the FC Augsburg training camp. The Swabians signed Greek football national team player Dimitrios Giannoulis on a free transfer from English second-tier club Norwich City. The left-back will receive a contract with FC Augsburg until summer 2028, as the Bundesligist announced.
Kristijan Jakic and Nediljko Labrovic were initially supposed to join the training camp of FC Augsburg in Bavaria, Germany, but their visas were denied, causing them to miss the South Africa trip. Instead of joining the team in South Africa, they will be completing individual training programs in Germany. Despite the setback, FC Augsburg managed to secure the services of Dimitrios Giannoulis, a Greek football national team player, who joined the team's training camp on a free transfer from Norwich City in England.
