Reus omitted from Germany squad, Schweinsteiger makes the cut
BERLIN --
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Marco Reus was dropped from Germany's European Championship squad on Tuesday, and captain Bastian Schweinsteiger made the final cut despite injury.
Reus, who had been struggling at the team's training camp in Ascona, Switzerland, was omitted from the final list of 23 players, along with Hoffenheim defender Sebastian Rudy and Bayer Leverkusen players Julian Brandt and Karim Bellarabi.
"The doctors could not give a clear prognosis," Germany coach Joachim Loew said of Reus. "He has huge health problems and can only walk straight at the moment. More wasn't possible in training so far."
Loew said there were too many doubts over whether Reus could recover in time for the tournament in France.
"It's a bitter decision for us and for him, a disappointment for us all, because a Marco Reus in form, healthy and fit, would have been a huge addition," Loew said. "But for technical reasons we have to take this decision as we know this tournament will be very strenuous."
Reus also missed Germany's World Cup win in 2014 because of injury.
"The young players Joshua Kimmich, Julian Weigl and Leroy Sane will be there. It's not a decision against three players, or four players, but for the 23 players that are there now," Loew said.
Kimmich, who plays for Bayern Munich, and Weigl, a Dortmund midfielder, made their debuts in the 3-1 loss to Slovakia in Augsburg on Sunday, along with Leverkusen goalkeeper Bernd Leno. Sane, a midfielder for Schalke, started for his second appearance.
Schweinsteiger was picked despite not playing since a partial ligament tear in national team training on March 22, his second knee injury of the year, while Mats Hummels, who has a calf injury, also made the cut.
"The prognosis on Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mats Hummels is clear from our medical department that they will be available for the tournament," Loew said. "Schweinsteiger, fully fit, will start training with the team this afternoon. Hummels will need a little longer. According to the doctors they'll both be available."
Germany plays Hungary in Gelsenkirchen for its last warm-up game on Saturday, before leaving for its tournament base in Evian-les-Bains on June 7. The tournament starts June 10 and Germany plays its first game against Ukraine in Lille on June 12.
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Squad:
Goalkeepers: Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Bernd Leno (Bayer Leverkusen), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Barcelona)
Defenders: Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich), Emre Can (Liverpool), Jonas Hector (Cologne), Benedikt Hoewedes (Schalke), Mats Hummels (Bayern Munich), Shkodran Mustafi (Valencia), Antonio Ruediger (Roma)
Midfielders: Julian Draxler (Wolfsburg), Sami Khedira (Juventus), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Mesut Ozil (Arsenal), Leroy Sane (Schalke), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Manchester United), Thomas Mueller (Bayern Munich), Julian Weigl (Borussia Dortmund)
Forwards: Mario Goetze (Bayern Munich), Mario Gomez (Besiktas), Andre Schuerrle (Wolfsburg), Lukas Podolski (Galatasaray)
