After months of injury, Jesper Karlsson will return to AZ’s match selection tomorrow evening. The Swede was injured in May against Vitesse, the last game of last season.
Karlsson rejoined group training last week and is now ready for his comeback. “He has worked his way through the mud. I also followed him closely when he was here again. Jesper is very hungry and eager to strengthen the team,” says trainer Pascal Jansen in conversation with AZTV.
In addition to Karlsson, Zinho Vanheusden seems to be preparing for playing minutes. The Belgian, who is rented from Internazionale, has not yet played for AZ. Jansen: “He is not far from playing in the first. It was an important moment for Zinho, that he participated for ninety minutes against Schalke 04 (practice match ed.). That is always a threshold. He played a great game and in that he held himself well.”
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Opponent FC Groningen is in a completely different phase than AZ. The team of the new trainer Frank Wormuth is twelfth and took eight points. “Defensively they are fairly stable, but they achieve varying results”, Jansen knows. “Frank Wormuth has of course come from Heracles Almelo and I think he is busy implementing his view of the game. We are well prepared for Saturday.”
Defender Bruno Martins Indi has undergone surgery for his injury, the trainer confirms. “It has been a tough intervention. Fortunately, he is getting better again. We have lost him for the time being and that is annoying. He is an important player.”
AZ will kick off tomorrow at 6.45 pm against FC Groningen.