Newsblog for 1. FC Cologne
Lemperle in the squad: Funkel familiar these players
Updated on May 17, 2025 – 6:42 p.m.Reading time: 68 min.
The 1. FC Köln is the football club from the cathedral city. In the New sticker on T-Online you will find all the important messages about the “billy goats”.
Tim Lemperle stands against 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the squad of 1. FC Köln. Friedhelm Funkel called the 23-year-old on Saturday for the 20-man contingent. After completing the final training, Lemperle and his teammates climbed into the team bus on the way to the hotel, where FC spends the night before the promotion final.
Overall, Funkel only made one change to the squad: Max Finkgräfe returns after the illness survived, while Neo Tello was used for the U21 on Saturday and is therefore not in the squad. In addition, Funkel trusts the line -up of the previous week.
Tim Lemperle is probably available to 1st FC Köln on Sunday against 1. FC Kaiserslautern. The 23-year-old took part in team training for the billy goats on Friday. The striker wore a special mask to protect the injuries that he had suffered from a fight in Cologne on the banks of the Rhine on Sunday.
Already on Thursday, the FC professional had been individually on the training ground at the Geißbockheim. Now he also participated with the team and should therefore be part of the squad against the red devils, at least on Sunday.
Does Tim Lemperle play again for 1. FC Köln? After the spanking scandal around the striker, sports director Thomas Kessler described the 23-year-old on Sunday in the promotion final against 1. FC Kaiserslautern as “unlikely”. Four days after the incidents and three days before the important game, Lemperle trained individually at the Geißbockheim.
However, nobody should see anything. While the team of coach Friedhelm Funkel enjoys a last day off, Lemperle was driven with a minibus from the cabin door to Franz-Kremer-Stadion around 150 meters away. Lemperle trained for around 45 minutes with three plasters on the face before leaving the stadium on the same path.
The two co-trainers Thomas Hickersberger and Matthias Lust were also on site in the stadium, Lemperle’s individual unit looked closely at. Whether the attacker can be used on Sunday depends not only on the facial injuries suffered, but in particular also on the Kniebstschw, which Lemperle had before the Nuremberg game. On Friday, Funkel should comment on the incidents at the game day press conference and whether a use of Lemperle against 1. FC Kaiserslautern is conceivable.
The scandal around Tim Lemperle employs 1. FC Köln, the fans and the police alike. On Wednesday, Captain Timo Hübers did not want to comment on the misconduct of his teammate and the attack on the 23-year-old. “I don’t say anything about Tim Lemperle. We can climb on weekends, so please ask me questions about sport,” said Hübers narrowly to reporter questions.
Hübers had only demanded more professionalism from his teammates after Carnival two months ago. At that time it came out that several FC players had gone to celebration despite an internal consultation. “It’s about it doesn’t happen again. I am very confident,” Hüber had explained.
The 1. FC Köln does not yet know in which league he will play in the coming season. Nevertheless, the squad planning run in the background. Now Besfort Zeneli is said to have aroused the interest of the Cologne. As the Swedish journalist Filip ELG reports, the billy goats are said to have targeted the IF Elsborg midfielder.