Assad Kotya-Fofana earns first FC Koln Bundesliga call-up

FC Koln have included teenage defender Assad Kotya-Fofana in their senior matchday squad for Friday’s Bundesliga trip to Eintracht Frankfurt as the club deals with a growing injury list.

The 18-year-old centre-back travelled with the team on Thursday and is set to be named among the substitutes for the first time in a Bundesliga fixture under coach Rene Wagner. His inclusion comes after another injury setback forced Köln to make changes to their squad.

Kotya-Fofana has enjoyed an encouraging development path at the club. He helped Köln’s U19 side win the German championship two years ago before finishing as a runner-up last season. Promoted early to the U21 squad during the summer, he has since established himself as a regular at that level.

His promotion comes at a difficult time for Köln, who will be without several players for the Frankfurt encounter. Imad Rondić has suffered a thigh muscle injury, joining Ragnar Ache, Thijs Dallinga, Timo Hübers, Ellyes Skhiri and Rav van den Berg on the unavailable list.

There is some positive news for Wagner, however, as Alessio Castro-Montes returns to the squad after nearly three weeks out.

Köln squad for Frankfurt

Goalkeepers: Marvin Schwäbe, Ron-Robert Zieler, Matthias Köbbing

Defenders: Alessio Castro-Montes, Sebastian Sebulonsen, Assad Kotya-Fofana, Luka Lochoshvili, Jahmai Simpson-Pusey, Joël Schmied, Gideon Mensah, Borna Sosa

Midfielders: Isak Jóhannesson, Tom Krauß, Paul Okon-Engstler, Mikey Moore

Wingers: Said El Mala, Reigan Heskey, Linton Maina, Jan Thielmann

Forwards: Luca Waldschmidt, Marius Bülter