Top striker Konaté is missing for a long time
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Since RB Leipzig was founded in 2009, 20 players have moved from sister club Red Bull Salzburg to today’s Bundesliga club – significantly more than from any other club. At least seven professionals took the opposite path – the eighth could follow in January. According to the “Salzburger Nachrichten”, the new sports director of the former Austrian series champion, Rouven Schröder – who himself has just come from Leipzig – would like to guide striker André Silva to the Salzach.
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The 29-year-old, who cost 23 million euros in 2021 and is contractually bound to Leipzig until 2026, hardly plays a role under Marco Rose anymore. And that despite the fact that recently things haven’t gone much better for the Saxons than for the Salzburg team. Silva will make nine appearances with 223 minutes of playing time across all competitions in 2024/25. The 53-time Portuguese international is still waiting for his first goal, and he has prepared two.
There is a need in Salzburg given the injury to top striker Karim Konaté (20). The Ivorian suffered a torn cruciate ligament at the end of November and will probably be out until the end of the season. Since Fernando (25) has also been missing for months, Pepijn Lijnders currently only has the inexperienced Moussa Yeo (20) and Petar Ratkov (21) available, while Gaoussou Diakité (19) usually plays for Liefering in the second division.
Together, Yeo and Ratkov only have six goals this season. Lijnders’ team is already 14 points behind defending champions Sturm Graz and is currently in seventh place, even in the relegation round. Silva’s experience, should the transfer take place, could be important in saving the season from the perspective of the Austrian Red Bulls.
