Thijs Dallinga will be out for several months after suffering a cruciate ligament injury in a test match against FC Viktoria Köln. The setback lands just as 1. FC Köln were starting to get a return from him, with 1 goal in 4 Bundesliga appearances and 192 minutes already on the board.
Köln's attacking problem
The bigger issue for Köln is the timing. Ragnar Ache must also pause because of a muscle injury, so the squad suddenly looks thin up front before the Rhine derby against Borussia Mönchengladbach on 11 October at 15:30 after the international break.
Köln's attack was already leaning on Dallinga. He had scored a brace in his first Bundesliga game against Hoffenheim, then added another league goal before the injury cut him down in a test against Viktoria Köln.
The club statement, translated from French by Foot Mercato, said: "Thijs Dallinga suffered a cruciate ligament injury today during the test match and will be out for several months." Dallinga told SPORT1: "Unfortunately, yesterday a nightmare became reality". He also said, "I still can't believe what happened, and it's hard for me to accept it, but I will do everything to come back as quickly as possible."
Köln do at least know the scale of the task now. They have 4 points from 4 league matches, and another attacking absence only increases the pressure on what they can put out at the weekend.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 4 outlets. How we work →
