In warm, sunny conditions at the winter training-quarters in Marbella, on Thursday, VfL head-coach Martin Schmidt gathered his men for two intensive sessions on the perfectly groomed training-grounds of the Marbella Football Center. In the morning, work on the ball was the focal point of the session for the Green-Whites, who went on to work up quite a sweat during a demanding session of circuit-training in the afternoon, before completing the day’s work with some approach and finishing exercises – which proved the source of some high-spirits.
"High intensity"
On the back of two draining sessions, the Wolves go into their first winter test-friendly against FC St. Pauli on Friday, January 5th (kick-off 15:00 CET, live in VfL stream). Defender Jeffrey Bruma sees the intense winter preparations as absolutely crucial, considering the shortened winter-break: "Just five days is a short training-camp. Naturally the intensity is high. There are then also two test-friendlies at a good level. But we need that right now: The Bundesliga gets going again very soon and we can’t take a slow and steady approach. That makes this work-load necessary."
Reunion with Paul Seguin
Prior to the afternoon session, there was a further surprise for the Wolves. Paul Seguin, currently on loan from VfL at Dynamo Dresden, is also in Marbella with his current club, with whom he will be training on the same grounds as the Green-Whites over the next few days. The young midfielder greeted many familiar faces in the Wolves team, before the second session of the day got underway. The two teams will also go head-to-head on the pitch, with VfL taking on Dynamo on Saturday, January 6th (kick-off 15:00 CET). The clash with Dresden will be broadcast live through the VfL stream.
