Luca Caldirola had very little time to prepare himself. The central defender found out just five minutes before the start of the match that he would be starting. “The coach came over to me and said, ‘Luca, you have to play!’ I just looked for my playing shirt and ran out onto the pitch,” said Caldirola. Sudden start, sudden comeback – what a way to make your return!
Just before kick-off, Lamine Sané told the trainers that he wasn’t fit to play. The Senegalese had a problem in the adductor region of his thigh. Head coach Nouri called on Caldirola to replace him. “I just thought, ‘At last I have my chance that I’ve been waiting for for seven months.’ I was really happy to be back on the pitch,” explained Caldirola.
The Italien played 90 minutes at the centre of the Green-Whites defence. Since injuring his ankle way back in September, he’s only played three times for the U23s and a friendly against VfB Oldenburg. Match practice? No chance! However, the 26-year-old put in a solid performance. „The first 15 minutes felt a bit strange, but then it got better. On the whole I was pleased with my performance,” said Caldirola.
Caldriola has had two days to celebrate the 5-2 win in Freiburg. “What a great feeling! We won away against a strong team and I played – it was a super day for me!”
