St Martin (Italy): Germany’s World Cup squad were ‘shocked’ after two people were left hospitalised following a car accident involving two of their players, team manager Oliver Bierhoff said on Wednesday. “It was a big shock when the news came through, especially for the two players involved,” said Bierhoff as Schalke 04’s Julian Draxler and Benedikt Hoewedes were passengers in separate cars during filming for Mercedes, one of the DFB’s sponsors, when the crash happened.
The accident at Germany’s pre-World Cup training camp in northern Italy on Tuesday left a course steward in hospital and a German bystander in a serious condition. The bystander was airlifted to hospital, while the course steward, named only as Michael K., is also being treated after he too was hit by the car driven by 19-year-old professional touring car driver Pascal Wehrlein. Agencies reported on Wednesday that the 63-year-old bystander is out of immediate danger.
Schalke centre-back Hoewedes was Wehrlein’s passenger in the Mercedes involved in the accident. Hoewedes revealed that he had helped emergency services at the scene. Formula One driver Nico Rosberg, who was driving the other Mercedes car at the time of the crash, wrote on Twitter: “The accident shocked me, my thoughts are with both victims,” while Wehrlein is said to be very upset by the incident. Bierhoff said both players had spoken to the team psychologist before training on Tuesday night.
Schweinsteiger, Khedira back in training
Meanwhile, Germany’s hopes of having a fully fit squad at next month’s World Cup in Brazil received a boost on Wednesday when holding midfielders Bastian Schweinsteiger and Sami Khedira trained with the team for the first time. Bayern Munich’s Schweinsteiger has endured an injury-hit season, with an inflamed knee the latest setback to keep him out of action in recent weeks.
