09.03.2022 15:08 h

Gladbach coach Huetter sidelined by Covid

Borussia Moenchengladbach head coach Adi Huetter has Covid and will be absent from Saturday's Bundesliga home match against Hertha Berlin.

His assistant coach Christian Peintinger will be in charge at Borussia Park after Huetter and another member of his coaching team tested positive.

Saturday's home match is of extra importance to Austrian Huetter, who is under pressure with Gladbach hovering above the relegation places following last weekend's 3-2 defeat at Stuttgart where they surrendered a two-goal lead.

The away loss was a further knock to a Gladbach team which has a "1000 things to work on", according to their 2014 World Cup winner Christoph Kramer.

Like Huetter, Hertha coach Tayfun Korkut is under pressure after Saturday's 4-1 thrashing at home by Eintracht Frankfurt pushed the Berlin club into the bottom three.

Rising numbers of Covid cases in Germany have also impacted other Bundesliga clubs.

Mainz are seeking to have Saturday's game at Augsburg played at a later date after last weekend's home game against Dortmund was postponed until March 16 because of 20 Covid cases in their squad.

Some of the Mainz team could be available again by the weekend, but "a large proportion of players would have to go straight from quarantine to the team bus," warned Mainz director Christian Heidel.

Other teams are similarly affected.

On Tuesday, Borussia Dortmund confirmed defenders Mats Hummels and Raphael Guerreiro have both tested positive.

Likewise, the coaching staff of Dortmund's next opponents Arminia Bielefeld have also been hit, which could impact Sunday's match.