training camp in South Africa - Two players were lost by FC Augsburg
In the catacombs of Mbombela Stadium, Augsburg striker Philip Tietz gave quirky greetings to his homeland. The forward wore the jersey number 17 of his teammate Kristijan Jakic during the 2:1 (1:0) win against Tanzania's record champions Young Africans SC in South Africa. Due to visa issues, both the midfielder and the new goalkeeper Nediljko Labrovic were denied entry.
"We're thumbing for them to come", said Tietz on Saturday. "It's sad for both of them and the team." Especially for Labrovic, who had just joined from HNK Rijeka and still needs to get to know the Bundesliga side. "Love greetings from Germany", said Tietz, laughed, and found the statement somehow peculiar.
The Augsburg squad, almost all of them, have been in White River in the Mpumalanga province in the northeast of the country since Thursday evening. For the Kroats Jakic and Labrovic, everything looked good at the departure from Germany. But they only made it as far as Johannesburg, where they were identified in the airport system under Nigerian names. According to "Augsburger Allgemeine" and "Kicker".
Augsburg's business manager Michael Stroell tried to clarify the situation. He had to fly back notariously to the original stopover in Dubai with the two players. Since the German authorities couldn't do anything in the meantime, Jakic and Labrovic then flew to Frankfurt. And Stroell rejoined the FC Augsburg squad during the test match.
"South Africa isn't always like this"
If there's no further system error, the duo should still travel to the training camp. A Safari of FC Augsburg in the Kruger National Park will be missed by Jakic and Labrovic though. "It's breathtaking," said midfielder Elvis Rexhbecaj. "South Africa isn't always like this, it's an experience for all."
The test against Young Africans SC was already such an experience. Few get to play in the 2010 World Cup Stadium Mbombela, formerly Nelspruit. "It was a tough opponent. I'm happy I got to experience playing in such a stadium", said Tietz (81. minute), who scored the second goal for Augsburg after Mads Pedersen (37.). For the opponent, only Jean Baleke (87.) was successful just before the final whistle.
Trainer Jess Thorup found the first half "quite good" against an opponent who was "brutally fast" and "physically strong". In the second half, he completely changed tactics. "It didn't work out well for me", he criticized.
The Augsburg team will face their second test in the "Mpumalanga Premier’s International Cup" against the South African first league team and host TS Galaxy on Saturday. They will then travel back to Germany.
- Despite the visa issues, Tietz expressed hope that Jakic and Labrovic will join the team in their upcoming training camp in South Africa.
- Because of the incident at Johannesburg's airport, Labrovic, who recently joined from HNK Rijeka, missed his opportunity to explore the Kruger National Park during the team's Safari.
- Fortuna Coburg midfielder Tietz expressed his 'Love greetings from Germany' to his teammates stranded in South Africa due to visa issues.
- The Augsburg squad, currently in Mpumalanga in the northeast of South Africa, will face TS Galaxy in their second test game before returning to Germany.
- Tietz, wearing Jakic's jersey number 17, scored the second goal for Augsburg against Tanzania's Young Africans SC in their test game held at Mbombela Stadium in South Africa.
- The team from Germany is training and playing test games in Mpumalanga, providing them an opportunity to get acclimated to the conditions in South Africa before their upcoming Bundesliga season.
